Vision's vision
by sci-fi brony
Summary: Heart's Vision has grown and is making his mark on Equestria. He is determined to change it for the better. Can he make the difference he wants or will he be held back by those around him. sequel to Heart's Tale. Co-written by DragonLovingBrony and ties into his Lunar Love Story series.
1. Intro

Intro: Ok so this will be a sequel to Heart's Tale. It is not so simple though. This is also a joint project between me, sci-fi brony and DragonLovingBrony. I will be writing majority of the beginning and this is a Heart focused story, but if you haven't read "Lunar love story" and its sequel you will not know all the characters. Lunar is written by DLB and is a good read.

Since this is a joint story it will take longer for uploads, please be patient. The way we have decided to do it is more or less a role play fashion. We each speak for our own OC. Either one of us could write for canon MLP characters but only the creator for the OC could put words in their mouth. This whole role play thing has been time consuming. It improves the quality so I think we will be keeping it.

The big problem is that we wont be uploading chapters that often. I am guessing one chapter a week. We will be trying to post on Wednesdays. That is NOT a promise. Shit happens and we might not be able to keep it so we won't even make it. I hope that each of you enjoy this story. ~ sci-fi


	2. Heart's change

**A/N: Well this is the first chapter of Vision's vision, the sequel to Heart's tale. I suck at beginnings so forgive me if it isn't up to your expectations. Also I am starting exactly where I left off in alt ending of Heart's Tale. ~sci-fi brony.**

Chapter 1: Heart's change.

Heart's Vision explained to Twilight Sparkle that he would be resuming his lessons. Heart told no pony about his brother. After a week Rose Spade reported him missing. Ponies searched for him but none found any trace. Rose trusted Heart to take care of himself and did not try to control him. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon hadn't been seen bullying any ponies since Heart showed them the errors of their ways. Heart had successfully corrected every problem in his life. He looked forward to each new day knowing that he would find happiness in his love for Scootaloo and Twilight's lessons. The school year was coming to an end and Cheerilee had given a assignment to write an essay on what each pony had learned this year. It was the last day of school as well as the day to read the essays in front of the class. Heart was chosen to go first.

Heart took his place in the front of the class. He levitated his paper so that all he had to do was look down with his eyes to read it. He cleared his throat before beginning. "What have I learned this year? I have learned a lot this year. Most of it not from this class. I learned many life lessons, things I will never forget. The first lesson I learned was before I came to Ponyville. I learned what it feels like to lose a pony that you love. I learned how hollow it leaves you, a hollow that can never be filled. I learned that that pony can never be replaced. I also learned how other ponies deal with that loss. Some embrace that loss and move on. Others resort to substances to forget what they lost, leaving behind their responsibilities and the ones still alive that need them. That was my first lesson of the year."

Heart looked at his fellow classmates, focusing primarily on Tiara and Spoon. "The second thing I learned, I learned from a select few of my fellow students. The students I speak of are no friends of mine. They are a blight and that is what they taught me. They taught me that not every pony is worth their cost. These ponies are vermin that only sap the happiness from their peers. They care not for the ones around them but for themselves only. I learned that it is up to the other ponies to stand up to these villains. I learned that we all have an obligation to help our fellow ponies."

Heart had given Tiara a stare the entire time he was talking. He sent her a telepathic message. _'A friendly reminder. If I ever see you hurt another pony, I will not hesitate to snuff your life out.' _Tiara had a look of pure fear. Heart continued his presentation. "I did learn more positive lessons as well." He looked at each of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, he held his gaze on Scootaloo. A smile came to his face just seeing the pony he cared so much for. "The third lesson I learned is that some ponies are too special to ever give up. These ponies are the best kind of ponies. They bring you happiness when you are sad. They go out of their way for you. They are the ponies that make this life worth living, but you must fight for these ponies. Make them happy as well and keep them safe or you will lose them and you can never get them back."

Heart focused back on his paper. "The fourth and final lesson I learned was one that I think was one of the most important. If your life is not where you want it to be then you need to fight. If something stands in your way, you need to deal with it. If you don't take your life into your own hooves, then you will never be happy. You have to take control of the present so that you have a future. That is what I learned this year."

Heart didn't wait for a response. He placed his paper on Cheerilee's desk before taking his seat next to Tiara. Tiara sat on the edge of her seat trying to be as far away from Heart as possible. The rest of the class read and turned in their papers and Cheerilee dismissed the class. Heart met with the CMC outside.

Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Apple Bloom congratulated Heart on the well done essay before the four went to the CMC's HQ. The four sat inside the club house. Heart started the conversation. "Sweetie, how has you magic been coming?"

Sweetie had been practicing since seeing how much Heart can do. "I have been doing really well. I can perform both the illumination and levitation spell very well. I have been trying to perform the cooling spell, but I can't seem to give it enough strength."

Heart had thought that the filly would have this problem with the spell. It was one thing learning it and another to perform it with enough magic to make a difference. "I have an idea on how to help you."

"How would that be?"

"Let me show you." Heart didn't give her time to answer before he shot a dark beam into her chest. She fell back from her sitting position.

Scootaloo freaked out. "What are you doing Heart!?"

Heart waved his hoof dismissively. "Calm down, Scoot. I didn't hurt her."

Sweetie sat up. "What did you do? My horn feels weird."

"I will explain after you try to perform the cooling spell on the cups of water on the table over there." Heart pointed to the table.

Sweetie thought she had already explained to Heart that she couldn't do it. "I can't do that spell, though."

Heart had a serious expression. "Just try to."

Sweetie didn't look very confident. "Ok, I will try." Sweetie aimed her horn at the closest cup of water. She tried with all her might and sure enough a beam of cold shot out of her horn, freezing the cup solid. Sweetie was shocked at her own work. "What? I have been trying that for so long. How come I can all of a sudden perform it?"

Heart looked smug at his handy work. "Because I boosted your power. I have been working on the spell for a while now. I created it. Yes, there are performance boosting spells, but they drain the power of who ever performs them. My spell just lets you unleash your own power."

All three fillies were surprised Heart created a spell. Scootaloo had a question. "Why would you create this spell?"

Heart looked to his dear Pegasus. "For you. The spell doesn't just work on unicorns. It works on Pegasi too. Well, in theory. Will you let me try it on you?"

Scootaloo looked at her wings. She still had not been able to sustain steady flight. She could burst herself into the air but couldn't hold it for very long. She doubted that it would work on her. She didn't doubt Heart, she doubted herself. "You can try."

Heart didn't let her gloom dampen him. He shot his beam at her. Nothing seemed to happen. "Try to fly, Scoot."

The filly did as Heart said. She started to flap her wings violently. She was surprised when she started gaining altitude. She was filled with happiness when she could stay in the air. She started to fly around the room, which had plenty of space for her to maneuver. "I am actually doing it! I am flying!"

Apple Bloom and Sweetie were in awe. Apple Bloom commented on how she couldn't call her a chicken any longer.

"You got that right!" Scootaloo continued to fly around.

Heart hated to burst the bubble. "I know you are happy and all but the spell is temporary. You probably have an hour before it wears off."

Scootaloo was disappointed that it didn't last forever but was too busy enjoying the moment. "I will worry about that in an hour. Right now I am flying."

Heart was happy to see his work pay off. "I will see you gals later. I am going to see Twilight."

The group said their goodbyes. Heart began the lengthy walk to the library. Heart sent a message to Twilight. _'It is cool if I come to the library, right?'_ It didn't take long for him to get a response.

'_You can come by. I have nothing to do. Don't expect any lessons, I don't have anything prepared.'_ Heart could sense that it was Twilight.

'_I wanted to talk. I know that you like planned lessons.' _Heart made it to the library. He came in without knocking. "Hey Twilight."

Twilight was waiting for him. "Hello Heart. What do you want to talk about?"

"I was wondering if we could increase our lessons. I was thinking that I could come here every day when I would normally be in school since the school year is over."

Twilight thought about it. "I guess we can schedule more lessons. I don't have a whole lot to do these days anyway."

Heart hopped up in excitement. "YES! I am going to learn so much."

Twilight loved seeing the colt get excited for learning. She didn't see that many fillies or colts get this way. "Calm down. We haven't even learned anything yet."

"I know it is just that I know that you are the best teacher there is."

"Flattery won't get you anywhere."

"I mean it. I wouldn't have learned half as much as I know now if some other pony had taught me."

"Thank you Heart. It means a lot to me to know that you appreciate my teaching."

"I really do. I will be leaving now. It will be dark soon, and I want to be ready for our lesson tomorrow." Heart left. He did not go home, though. He had to stop by Scootaloo's home. She would be going home soon too. He did not have to wait long before he saw her. He explained that Twilight would be teaching him more and said goodnight to her. He gave her a peck on the lips before departing. Heart went home and slept to be ready for his lesson tomorrow.

_**Fast forward sequence**_.

Heart's Vision learned many new spells as well as other information about magic over his break. He did some private research on education system in Ponyville. He found that if he could pass the graduation exam that he could graduate no matter his age. He studied and when he thought he was ready he convinced Rose Spade to give him permission to take it. He passed it and was let out of school four years early. Since he no longer went to school, he got a job working at Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack questioned whether or not to hire him but Apple Bloom told her to. Applejack agreed. Heart spent his time working, learning from Twilight, or hanging out with the CMC. Rose passed away from over dosing. Heart was old enough and had enough money to stay in the home. Shortly after, Scootaloo's parents divorced. Scootaloo didn't want to choose between her parents, so she moved in with Heart. She was still in school but was old enough to stay with Heart. Heart had grown from a scrawny colt to an average sized stallion. He knew more magic than any other unicorn in Ponyville. Scootaloo had gained her cutie mark, it was one big purple butterfly with two small yellow ones on each side. It represented her ability to perform stunts. Some ponies have been noted saying that "She moves as graceful as a butterfly." She grew into a perfectly healthy Pegasus, and she was a more than capable flyer. She couldn't keep up with Rainbow Dash but could pass most Pegasi in Ponyville.

Heart and Scootaloo were on the couch in their home. Heart sat up while Scootaloo laid with her head resting on Heart's legs. Scootaloo looked up at Heart. "What is on your mind, sweetie?"

Heart shook his head escaping from his thoughts. He hadn't had any horrible visions since Scootaloo and him had been together. "Nothing important." Heart looked at her cutie mark.

Scootaloo thought he was looking at her flank. She gave him a playful nudge. "Hey my eyes are here not down there."

Heart gave a smile. "I was looking at your cutie mark." He ran his hoof over it.

Scootaloo could tell he was telling the truth but wanted to mess with him. "Sure you were. It isn't like I haven't caught you looking at it before." she was smiling.

Heart looked at her. "Hey, don't blame me. You shouldn't be showing off precious goods like that. They might get stolen."

"What do you want me to do, wear a dress all the time? Because that is not going to happen."

"It baffles me that a mare like you managed to get such a girly cutie mark. The mare with the closest thing to it is Fluttershy, and you and her are polar opposites."

"Don't tease me about my cutie mark, Mr. Eye. Mine is way better than yours."

"Yours might look better, but at least mine doesn't make ponies wonder if the wrong cutie mark appeared."

Scootaloo knew how to make this conversation stop. She wasn't upset or anything. She just wanted to mess with Heart further. "If you don't stop, you won't get any for a month."

Heart knew she wasn't serious but wanted to milk the opportunity. "Oh no, don't neglect me. Forgive me, almighty goddess. I realize the error of my ways."

Scootaloo had her fun. "You are forgiven as long as you give your goddess a kiss."

"Happily." Heart gave her peck on the lips.

Scootaloo wasn't letting him get away with that. "I don't think so." She pulled him down into another but this on lasted a few seconds and was no peck.

Heart pulled away. "As much as I love this I need to start heading to work."

Scootaloo made a puppy dog face. "But who will keep me company?"

"I am sorry that I have to work today but Big Mac is ill and Applejack needs an extra hoof, or in my case horn. You can go hang out with Sweetie Belle or Rainbow Dash."

"I guess your right. I haven't seen Dash in a while." Scootaloo sat up letting Heart escape.

Heart got off the couch and headed for the door. "I will be back as soon as I can." He turned back to see if the Pegasus was going to leave right away or stay a little longer. He got something a little surprising.

Scootaloo had sprawled out on the couch trying to make herself look attractive. "Your goddess will be waiting."

Heart shook his head. "I would say you are a silly filly that needs to grow up but I prefer my marvelous mare just the way she is." Heart left before he changed his mind about going to work. _'I can be happy as long as I have her. I don't need anything else.'_

**A/N: that is the first chapter. I hope you liked it. Happy times from me to you. **

**~sci-fi brony. **


	3. Just another day

**A/N: this is DragonLovingBrony and I helped on this chap and will help more later on when the chaps include Dan and Nick more often 'til then I will be in and out and sci-fi brony will be doing most of the story and chaps. but don't worry I am hidden in the background till it comes for Dan to appear and be a pain in the ass like normal. 'til then see ya round! ~ DragonLovingBrony**

**A/N: Ok so DLB helped with the editing of every chapter. This the A/N he sent just in general. I forgot to add it to the first chapter. My bad. Well this is a joint project but DLB doesn't seem to keen on having A/Ns for every chap. I generally have them for the opening and closing for every chap but that is me. This is an ok chapter. Oh yeah I am putting this A/N after I have written it. As of now we have 7 chapter completed. Two are in progress. Since chapter 8 is a Heart solo chapter Chaotic and Nick are not there so I can write it freely. So chapter 8 is done but chapter 7 and 9 are in progress. I admit it is odd writing the middle of a chapter when you have the beginning and end complete. Also, I know that there is no way for me to verify that DLB is actually involved in this story but if doubt it you can always message him. Well this A/N is too long so any info that I would share will have to wait 'til next week. *hahaha* I'm an asshole. Please review. **

Chapter 2: Just another day

Luna's moon shined down on Equestria. Heart's Vision eyes opened. _'I am happy Applejack lets me keep this job, but I wish I didn't have to wake up so early.'_ Heart tried moving but was being held down by a possessive sleeping Scootaloo. He shook her a little bit. "Wake up, marvelous. I need to go to work, and I can't do that with you clinging to me."

Scootaloo didn't move. She answered sleepily. "But I want my pillow to stay."

Heart could never get tired of this mare. "If you move now, I will let you stay in bed and fix you some breakfast."

"You win, but it better not be a sandwich." The Pegasus rolled over while keeping her eyes closed.

Heart got up. "Ok no sandwiches." He took a shower before going to the kitchen and preparing a nice salad for each of them. He called back to the room. "It is ready!"

He heard a voice call back. "I want it in bed!"

"I don't think so. You need to wake up anyway. It won't be long before you go to school." After a few second he heard a load thump. "What was that?"

Scootaloo lumbered into the kitchen. "I accidentally fell off the bed. You should have brought it to me."

Heart rolled his eyes. "Come on and eat. I have to leave soon." The pair ate their breakfast together and then Heart left for Sweet Apple Acres. He arrived when the sun was fully revealed and illuminated the farm.

Applejack was exiting her home when she saw Heart. "Hey their H. How you doin' today?"

Heart gave his usual answer. "Just dandy."

"You ready to work?"

"As always."

"Good. Let's get started then." Applejack went in the direction of the orchard.

Heart followed. "How is Big Mac doing?"

Applejack bucked the nearest apple tree. "He will be able to work tomorrow. Granny wants him to rest some more so he doesn't were himself out."

Heart levitated some baskets, catching all the apples that fell from the tree. "That big guy better get well. If not I am going to have kick his flank. I don't like it when my friends get sick."

The continued working while talking. Applejack chuckled. "You beat Big Mac? Do you have ah death wish. He would beat ya into next week!"

"He may have the muscle, but I got the magic."

"Oh yeah, you and your silly horn."

"This silly horn comes in handy a lot of times."

AJ put her hooves up and waved them for emphasis. "Ooh the magical horn that helps you lift things. I am so amazed."

"My horn can do a lot more than just lift things."

AJ stopped and looked to him. "Like what? I haven't seen you do anything besides that."

Heart could go many routes, but his playful nature got the better of him. "You should try dating a unicorn. Then you wouldn't doubt the horn."

"You making a pass at me young stallion?"

Heart hadn't stop smiling. "No ma'am. Scootaloo would ring my neck."

Applejack new Heart was playful and meant nothing by it. "Let's get back to work. We have a lot to do today." They continued to work tell the sun was starting to lower.

Heart said goodbye to Applejack then left for home. On his way he saw a couple of fillies. He would have thought nothing of it but three were laughing but the fourth was far from it. She looked on the verge of tears. Heart walked over to the group he stood behind the three fillies that all were to focus on the secluded on.

"Why haven't you got your cutie mark huh? Maybe it is because you are meant to be blank flank forever, nothing special about you." The other two laughed.

The solo filly looked scared. Heart cleared his throat. "What do you fillies think your doing?"

The trio of bullies turned with fear. The leader of the group had a light yellow Earth pony. She spoke up. "We were just playing with our friend here."

Heart would not be fooled so easily. "You are liars. I don't care if you are children. What your doing is wrong. This filly is just as special as any other pony. You are the ones that are worthless. You are causing pain for your own pleasure, and you get away with it because you think you are stronger. Well I am stronger than you, so what if I cause you some pain for my pleasure?"

The trio had their mouths agape and had horror in their eyes.

"Run along before I act on my thoughts." The bullies ran away from Heart. He walked up to the prey of the mean fillies. "Are you ok?"

The filly sniffled. "Yeah, they always do this."

Heart had felt this pain and wished that ponies were not cruel to one another. "Don't let them do that to you."

The Pegasus looked up to the unknown unicorn. "How am I suppose to stop them? I am weak."

"You are not weak. You are stronger than any of them."

"No, I am not."

"Really? You think that? I don't think you understand how strong you are. You say they do this all the time. I don't think any of them could stand what you go through. They are pathetic. They pick on you because they are afraid of you."

"Huh?"

"Yep, that is why they do it. They see that you don't have your cutie mark, and they get scared because you could do anything. For all they know you could be a princess one day. The important thing is that you don't give up on yourself. Every pony is special in their own right. You just have to find it."

The Pegasus cheered up a little. "You really think I could be a princess?"

Heart told no lie. "I believe that you can do whatever you set your heart on. Now go on home."

"Thank you, mister." The little filly ran off.

Heart loved helping ponies. _'Now I am going to be late, and Scoot is going to worry. She will understand when I explain.' _

Heart went on home and sure enough when he got there Scootaloo had something to say about him being late.

Scootaloo jumped on him with a hug and a kiss. "What took you so long? I have been waiting forever."

Heart didn't have a whole lot of strength and almost fell over from the attack. "Whoa there. You can't be doing that all the time. One day I am going to fall with you."

"Whatever, why are you late?"

"I had to help a Pegasus on the way back."

Scootaloo flew away and sat on the couch. She patted the spot next to her, telling Heart to come sit. "Who did you have to help?"

Heart did as he was told, plopping on the couch. He levitated the Pegasus onto his lap. "Well, there was a little Pegasus filly being picked on."

Scootaloo looked a little saddened. "What was she being picked on for?"

"Blank flank."

"Did you stop the bullies?" Scootaloo hated that ponies picked on ponies that hadn't got their cutie mark.

"Yes, dear. I wouldn't let some innocent filly get picked on."

"Good, I hated that when I had to go through it."

"I know that Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon gave you a hard time. Luckily they moved to Canterlot."

"Yeah. I am not sure I could deal with them now. You got lucky and don't have to go to school anymore."

"I don't want to hear any complaining from you. You only have a few months tell you graduate."

Scootaloo leaned away and put her hoof up to her forehead. "But it is so far away. How will I ever make it."

Heart shook his head and smiled. "Are you watching soap operas or something when I am not around?"

Scootaloo recovered quickly. She hit Heart playfully. "Don't say I watch that stuff. I am not that old."

"Ok I will tell all the other ponies that you watch them sleep at night instead."

"*sigh* Let's just go to bed. You need to get up early." She hopped off of Heart.

Heart huffed as she knocked the air out of him. "Calm down. Why are you so anxious to go to sleep?"

Scootaloo faced Heart. "Who said anything about sleeping?" She ran off to the bedroom before Heart could say anything.

Heart calmly walked to the room. _'Why is she so playful? Sweetie and Apple Bloom don't act like this. Oh hell, who am I kidding, I love it.'_

**A/N: Ok that is it. Short but hoped you liked it. The next chapter will be longer. I hope it makes up for this one being so short. This chapter is not anything too important just showing how Heart is different than in "Heart's Tale." Happy thoughts on yall.**

**~sci-fi brony.**


	4. A New Meeting

**A/N: I wanted to say that this was an interesting chapter to write. Since I had no control over a character, I was taken by surprise several times. It gave me choices but I didn't have certainty in the outcome. Please show your support and don't forget to review. ~ sci-fi**

Chapter 3: A New Meeting

It was a new day when Heart entered the library. But instead of seeing Twilight like he had expected he saw some new stallion talking to Spike. Heart had heard that she had just gotten back from being in Canterlot for a short time and wanted to say hello and welcome her back. But Twilight wasn't in sight, yet she was the topic of the conversation between Spike and this stallion. _'I wonder what his intentions for Twilight are?' _So Heart spoke up to ask Spike where Twilight was.

This was when the stallion turned to him and Heart saw what he looked like. His body was all light blue except for the neon green swirl designs on his legs and neck. His wings were red with the neon green on the edges. Then he had a green and black Mohawk and the same colors for his tail. Spike turned from this stallion and turned to Heart. "Oh hey Heart this is Nick. Twilight's colt-friend. So what brings you here?" Nick stepped forward with a smile. "Nice to meet the student and friend I have heard about. Names Nick." Nick then held out a hoof for him to shake.

Heart reluctantly shook his hoof. "Hi. You know me apparently, but who are you?"

Nick smiled back at him as he put his hoof down. "Well you know my name and as Spike said I am Twilight's Colt-friend. I was part of the reason she was in Canterlot for so long. So sorry for keeping her away so long from the studies, but life happens. So I hear you are dating, Scootaloo, was it? how's that going?"

Heart didn't like ponies who knew more about him than he knew about them. He wasn't sure if to trust this pony. "Yes, it is Scootaloo, but that is my business not yours. I will ask again, who are you? Where are you from? I have never heard of you before and I have lived in Ponyville for a long time now, so I know you are not from around here. Twilight never talked about a stallion in Canterlot, so either you have only recently met her or before now she didn't think highly of you. If she recently met you than why didn't she tell me about you?" Heart waited for a response. He watched the new pony for signs of distress as he waited, observing him carefully.

Nick was slightly taken back by this stallions attitude and was starting to feel interrogated. But unlucky for Heart, Nick took it as a challenge. And Nick didn't like to be challenged. So Nick stood tall and puffed his chest as he spoke in a firm tone. "If you and Scootaloo is none of my business then why the hell is me and Twi your's? You know what. I'll be nice and tell you anyway. I am from another world and Twilight was helping me learn about this place. And we fell for each other. Then once I was turned into a pony we started dating. So ya, not from around here, new to this world and to her. But she must think very highly of me since we are dating." Nick stood there staring this stallion in the eyes waiting for something to happen when Twilight came into the room to see the two stallions in a stare down.

_'Good thing Spike came to get me. Or this could end badly.' _Twilight cleared her throat and walked forward. "Hello Heart it's good to see you. I see you met Nick. So are you two getting along?" Nick's look had lightened the second he saw Twilight, but he gave a huff when she asked how they were getting along. "Ya, sure. But he doesn't seem as nice as you let on."

Heart kept his gaze on the alicorn named Nick. "It is my business because I will not let Twilight get hurt by some random stallion."

Twilight was glad that Heart looked out for her but she couldn't let him and Nick fight. She loved both of them in her own way and wanted them to be friends. "Heart! Don't be rude to Nick. I care for him and he cares for me. If you care for me then you will give Nick a chance. He is very kind and I know you are as well."

Heart looked to Twilight. He didn't want to upset her anymore. "I make no promises of liking him but I will give him a chance, for you." Heart faced Nick. "I am sorry for being rude. It was not right of me. Will you forgive me so that we can start again?"

Twilight wasn't sure if Nick would say yes so she added to the mix. "Please Nick, he is nice when you get to know him."

Nick shrugged and relaxed. "Anything to make you happy Twi. And if he is looking out for you he can't be all bad anyway. So starting over. Names Nick, nice to meet ya." Then Nick Turned his head to Twilight with a smile. "So you ready to go to lunch? Oh and would you like to join us Heart? You can bring Scootaloo if you want. Or come by your self, or not at all. Just thought I would offer since you are here."  
Nick was smiling somewhat sincerely and Twilight was happy that he was at least trying. She just hoped Heart would give the same effort.

Heart put on a fake smile. He would give this pony a shot. He told Twilight he would try and he meant it. "Scoot is busy but I would like to join you. I have nothing planned today anyway. Where would you like to go?" 

Twilight smiled as she had an idea pop into her head. "How about Hay Burger. I love that place." She wasn't going to let them know that she wanted to go there because it was public as well. Less likely to fight if others are around, she hoped.

So the group walked quietly to the dinner with Nick's wing over Twilight. This didn't make Heart happy but he stayed quiet for the time being until he knew more about this stallion. Then they ordered and sat down to started eating. They were in the middle of eating, and in awkward silence when Twilight received a letter from Celestia asking for her help on something. "Sorry boys but it seems I am needed in Canterlot for the rest of the day. So how about you two spend it together and get to know each other more? You know some male bonding time? Please?" She looked pleadingly at them both, but mainly Nick. She knew he had a hard time saying no to her.

And as she hoped, Nick caved. Even if he had to fight the urge to face hoof himself hard enough to knock himself out. He gave a sigh before answering. "Fine, for you Twi. But you might owe me for this one later." Twilight jumped in joy and kissed Nick on the lips before turning to heart hoping he would go along with it as well. She gave him another pleading look while she waited for his answer.

Heart wasn't completely on board with the whole idea of spending the whole day with Nick. He couldn't say no to Twilight when she apparently wanted it so much. "I can spend the day with Nick. It will give me a chance to get to know him better."

Twilight was glad they both agreed. She was sure they would like each other if they get to know each other. "Thank you Heart. I am going now so you boys behave, I mean it. I don't want to get a letter that either of you are in the hospital." Twilight gave both stallions a stern look before leaving.

Heart turned to Nick. "We have the whole day so what do you want to do? There is a few things to do in Ponyville. I think the bowling alley is open."

"Bowling sounds good. I haven't tried it in this form before so might as well try something new. Lead the way if you don't mind. Haven't gotten much of a tour yet."

Heart left the Hay Burger with Nick. They went to the bowling alley owned by Mr. Kingpin. Heart paid for both of them. But Nick didn't like the idea much. But he figured better not start anything over it. "Thanks for paying, but I could have done so. So next time I pay for myself." Heart agreed with this then Heart picked the lane at the very end so that they could talk without being disturbed by other ponies. Heart took his first turn. He didn't use magic to bowl. He placed the ball at the edge of the lane and smacked it with his right fore hoof. "How did you and Twilight meet?" The ball hit the pins at the end. Three were left standing on the right side.

Nick was impressed that Heart could actually bowl without fingers so decided to try it the same way. so Nick tried to bowl without hands as he answered. "My friend Dan brought me here, since we both had nothing in our old world. But you might know him better as king Chaotic Love now. And I knew of Twilight, and she was there when I came through the portal. So we started talking. Then Dan asked her to teach me about this place and its customs so I didn't mess anything up. And after being attacked and protecting her, and spending so much time together we just fell for each other. Simple as that." Nick rolled the ball a little harder than planed, due to still not knowing his own strength in this body, and ended up going into the gutter right before the pins. "Darn, this is harder without finger holes."

Heart did know of king Chaotic Love. He still wanted to be an advisor and needed to be updated on Equestria's rulers. He had read about Chaotic's negotiations with the other kingdoms as well as the changelings. He didn't know what fingers were though. "What are fingers?"

Heart position himself to send the ball down the lane as Nick face hoofed. "Oh they are digits that were part of my hand. You know what it is easier to show you then explain it." then Nick made a hand out of magic appear next to him. "Twilight Showed me how to do this in case I needed to use hands instead of hooves, while I get used to them. and if you haven't guessed I wasn't always a pony so that's why I seem so out of touch with this body."

Heart sent the ball towards the pins. He was paying attention to bowling and didn't notice the hand right away. He thought it looked weird. The further he thought about it the more useful he realized having hands could be. "What else is different in your worlds than ours?"

and with that Nick started on how Humans were the dominate species in that world and how ponies didn't talk or have magic. How most of the creatures here were just myths in his old world and how in that world this one was just a tv show. He told Heart that was how he knew the rulers and Twilight and her friends before even coming here. Nick left out the part that he wasn't really into the show at first, just so he didn't look uninterested in Twilight. Then Nick asked a question that he hoped wouldn't upset Heart.

"So what does that cutie mark of yours mean? It looks cool but I haven't read much about them so I don't know what most of them mean. And that's a rare one from what Twi told me, so what does it mean? If you don't mind me asking."

Heart didn't doubt anything that Nick said. Heart looked at his flank. His cutie mark was unusual compared to others. It was his own eye but with a heart as the pupil. "My cutie mark represents my special skill. I can see pony's magical core. It is useful to tell a pony's mood. Your core reacts depending on your feelings. If you are nervous it tends to move around as if wanting to escape. This can reveal when a pony is lying. I have to actively try to see the core though, so I have to think ahead. That is not my only skill however. I can also manipulate the core. I can help ponies release their natural abilities for short periods of time." Heart smiled at his memories. "I used to love using that ability to let Scootaloo fly. It made her so happy."

Heart regained his neutral composer. "I want to make this clear. I care for Twilight. She is part of my family and will always be. I take care of my family. If you hurt her in any way then I will make you pay for it." The entire time Heart spoke his eyes were cold with no sympathy.

Heart didn't want Nick to get upset, just understand. Heart avoided Nick responding with a cheery attitude. "How about you take your turn so you can get some practice with that body."

Nick did just that and stared to bowl, this time hitting the pins. "I am glad she has even more family to look out for her and I would love to join it. and hurting her is the last thing I want to do. And If I ever did, I would let you do whatever without fighting you. And I can tell your love for Scootaloo is true."

Nick looked at Heart with a smile. "You have the same look on your face when you talk about her that I do when I think about Twi and when Chaotic talks about Luna. So stay happy with her. And as to your mark and abilities, that is pretty cool. So do ponies cores all look different and have different colors? Or are they all basically the same? Sorry this just makes me want to know. Humans have always liked the idea of having souls and have debated this for as long as any can remember. So you saying this magical core thing kinda makes me think of the soul. And other things like auras that others talk about. So I just thought I would ask about them."

Heart had similar conversations with ponies who didn't understand the difference between the two. He had grown use to explaining it. "The core and soul are not the same. The core is their magical talent where the soul is who they are. The core does carry traits and looks different for every pony. It as multiple factors that make up the core's appearance. One is the pony's favorite color. The core is that color."

Heart looked at Nick's core. "For example your's is blue, like a navy blue. The other big factor is their magical ability. If a pony is in tune with their core it will flow through their body easier. The size of the core shows the raw potential."

Heart became slightly saddened. "Twilight always said I had potential but I have no way of knowing. I tried to see my own core in a mirror but cores don't reflect like light. I will never be able to see my potential."

Nick couldn't help but smile. "Ya that's the problem with potential. you can never see your own until it comes out. Even then it can be hard to see if you don't let yourself. but I never let others tell me what they thought about my potential anyway. I figure that i have enough to be me and what I will need to be for those I care for. any more than that is just extra for me to enjoy. so don't worry that you can't see your own. you will feel it and that's all that matters." Nick smiled as the game ended and he lost by a lot but had fun anyway so it was a good learning experience. "So what should we do next?"

Heart was glad this pony wasn't narrow minded. Heart thought that it might be more interesting to see if Nick could perform more complicated tasks. "How about we go to the park and play some soccer?" Nick agreed and they left. The park was empty. Not many ponies come out here and it was a week day so most were at work. There was two goals set up for the kids who played often. Heart looked around for a ball, he found none. "I will be back." Before Nick could respond Heart teleported. A few seconds passed and he reappeared with a ball floating next to him. It was heavily weathered and looked like it had seen a lot of use. Heart looked at the ball with all the happy memories. "What this thing has been through. I am glad it still hasn't broken. You ready to play?"

Nick smirks and nodded before he remembered he wasn't in his normal body, so wouldn't be as good now as he used to be. Then his smirk faded into a small frown. "As I ever will be. Just don't laugh to much when I trip over my own hooves. I am used to playing this with two feet not four hooves. But let's see what happens." The two started to play and Nick was surprisingly good and caught on quick to the different amount of limbs. He did like this sport after all and played it in school so it was easier to catch onto than bowling that he had rarely played. "Looks like I still got it. Now let's see if I can do this." Nick tried a flip the ball trick but it ended up being kicked in Hearts direction. It would have hit him in the chest but Heart put a small shield to block it. Nick was glad Heart had quick reaction. "Sorry about that. Guess that trick won't work when I'm like this."

Heart found it humorous. He didn't laugh because he didn't want to upset the stallion. "Let's try to keep the fancy stuff to a minimum." Nick agreed with a "probably for the best" and the two continued to play. Heart was not very good but still had fun. Nick ended up beating Heart. Heart didn't mind losing as long as it was fun, and it was. The day was nearing its end and Heart had one more activity in mind.

Heart sat his ball next to one of the goals. "So you seem to be a decent pony but I need to know if you can handle yourself. What if some scumbag tries to give Twilight a hard time? She can handle herself but doesn't like to hurt ponies so I need to know if you can. What do you say to a friendly fight? I can heal any wounds that either of us receives."

Nick didn't think twice about having a friendly fight but he and Heart hadn't exactly had a good start and wasn't sure if Hearts intentions were for fun. "Sure we can but I don't know a whole lot about magic. So you will have to get used to the idea of my fighting more physically."

Heart was happy he accepted. "You don't have to know magic. Fight the most effective way you can. Now ready yourself." Heart took a fighting stance with his horn pointed at Nick ready to deliver. Nick didn't have the magic but he did know how to fight. He was unsure about this body but he picked up on soccer pretty easily so he thought it wouldn't be that bad. He readied himself. "Who gets first strike?"

Nick got an answer as Heart sent a beam at his hooves. Nick jumped back even though it wouldn't have hit him anyway. Nick instantly saw the huge disadvantage that he had. Heart had range but he had to get close to do any damage. But Nick didn't plan on being caught off guard again. So he charged forward trying his best to close the gap between himself and Heart.

Heart managed to shoot three more beams before Nick reached him. Nick dodged all of them. He charged at Heart and when he came close enough he jumped and positioned himself to deliver a super man punch directly into Heart's cheek. It would have been a strong blow but Heart put a small shield around his face that absorbed all of the force. Heart could feel the force behind the punch and realized that he probably would have been knocked out if it wasn't for his shield. Nick just smiled knowing this would be more interesting than he had thought.

Heart teleported a few meters away before Nick could deliver another blow. "You have some major speed and strength. It would be a great advantage if you were to learn magic as well. How about we try that again but with a little more effort?" Heart smiled as he taunted. A bubble appeared around Heart protecting him from all sides. Nick gave Heart a challenging look in return, that turned into slight confusion. Nick didn't see a way around this shield and still didn't know any magic that would help get rid of it, so he asked. "How am I supposed to hit you with that shield?"

Heart shrugged. "I don't know. That is your problem." Nick got a smug smile and spoke up. "and soon it will be yours." Heart launched a beam at Nick. The shield opened up enough for the beam to go through and closed immediately after. Nick dodged the ray. The shield blocked any physical attack but it was better to be up close where he wouldn't be such an easy target for Heart. So Nick closed the gap once more. Dodging Hearts attacks the entire time.

When Nick came close Heart stopped attacking. Heart just stood there waiting for Nick to do something. The unicorn looked smug. Nick hit the shield. It rippled but did not go down. Nick had an idea. He turned and used both his hind legs to hit the shield. He put all the force he had in the strike and bucked like his life depended on it. The shield folded under the strike. Heart didn't look shocked.

Nick came in close and began a volley of controlled jabs. Nick felt awkward fighting in this body. He was standing on his hind legs and using his fore legs to punch. Heart was steadily backing up and using small triangular shields to block specific punches. Heart had a straight face and was focusing on the alicorn's strikes. Nick was fast, a little too fast for Heart to keep up with. Nick managed to land a punch on Heart's left shoulder. Heart didn't react to it. Nick knew that it contacted and knew it would slow Heart down if nothing else.

Heart sent a shock wave away from his body making Nick fly away and up. Nick flailed a little before regaining his composer with some wobbly flying. Heart felt the pain but did not show how much it hurt. "I know you can dish it out but can you take it?" Heart grabbed a hold of Nick's body with magic. Nick couldn't move at all and just looked back with a straight face. "This is a cheap shot."

"It might be cheap but I need to know." Heart focused on the alicorn's wings. Heart snapped the frail things. Nick cringed and made a grunt but didn't yell. Heart let go of his magical grasp on Nick. Nick fell from thirteen feet in the air. The fall could easily break some bones but Nick was smart and rolled with the landing. Nick still hit hard but avoided any further injury. Heart was actually impressed with the landing. "That was nice but are you still willing to fight? Because if not I am not sure you are worthy of Twilight."

Heart was glad that he had will. He shot some more beams of magic at Nick, which he dodged and then proceeded to close the gap between the two ponies. Again Nick had managed to get close and begin attacking. Heart was having more trouble avoiding with the hurt shoulder. Heart decided to change up the defense and strike with his right fore hoof at Nick. This was a mistake. Nick saw the slow punch coming. Nick knocked the hit away and countered with a hoof to Heart's face. Nick would have continued but he didn't want to really hurt Heart that much if he didn't have to.

Heart stumbled back While Nick backed off and waited to see what would happen next. Heart had seen enough and could pass his judgment. "Ok that is enough. Come here so I can heal you." Heart had a big mark and cut on his face where Nick had hit. Without waiting for consent Heart began to use his magic to mend Nick's wings. Nick flinched at the feeling. Heart then proceeded to heal his shoulder and face. "I am glad you are a capable fighter, determined too. Most ponies can't keep up with even that little amount of force." Heart looked at Nick waiting to see how he felt about it.

Nick flexed his wings and back a few times before answering. "If I can stand up to a crazy maze meant to train Dan and Discord to protect her, and that was when I was in a weaker body, then I am not going to let any pony stop me. No offence. I have always been a fighter and any that mess with those I care for wont like it when they meet me. Though I will admit that these damn wings are more sensitive than I was told. So going after you broke them was a hell I wasn't used to. That one was the hard part. Besides that I think I would have been fine in most fights. And once Twi teaches me magic and I start training with it I might just be a challenge for anything I can think of. But I have a long way to go on that so I will rely on my physical strength and knowledge of fighting to keep ahead."

"But thanks for the fun fight and teaching me that these wings are a pain in the back." Nick gave a huff of amusement as he stuck his hoof out to heart. Nick hoped that Heart would accept it so they wouldn't be fighting over Twilight like this any longer. Nick figured Heart would make a better ally then enemy. Besides that, and more important to him, Twilight wanted them to get along. And Nick wanted her to be happy so he would do just about anything. It did help that Nick didn't think Heart was all that bad. A bit over protective for his tastes, but he could appreciate that he was watching out for his friends. And since Heart had Scootaloo Nick wasn't worried about him as a challenger for her heart. And that made it a lot easier for Nick to give him a chance to begin with. So Nick stood there with his hoof out waiting to see how heart would react.

Heart hoof bumped with Nick. "Those wings aren't so bad. You just need to flow some magic into them. You do that and those things can be a deadly weapon." Nick was used to hand, or hoof shakes, but accepted the action and advice all the same. Heart walked to fetch is ball. "You aren't so bad. I think I can let you date Twilight. Hell, maybe we could go on a double date. I am sure Scootaloo will enjoy meeting you. Don't mention that we bowled though, she isn't allowed to anymore." Nick gave a huff of amusement. "Sorry but I don't need anyone to allow it but Twi. Thanks for agreeing with it though. And that sounds like a great idea. But dare I ask why she isn't allowed to? Let me guess a ball through the roof?"

"Well it was before I came to Ponyville but she told me about it..." Nick was amused by the answer and told Heart that he was heading back to the library because he could feel Twilight was going to be back soon. "So I will see you later. And I will let Twi know about the double date. Have a nice night." Heart waved a goodbye. "You too." Heart and Nick departed. Heart was sure that Scootaloo was waiting for him at home. He thought that this was a pretty good day. _'I hope Nick is smart. It would be a shame if I had to hurt him but if he hurts Twilight I will have no choice.'_

**A/N: This was a time consuming chapter. We didn't know how to really do it. We talked it over and DLB brought up that we could like RP with it. I think it turned out great. It increases quality and in this case quantity. It helps us not tread on each other's characters as well. It is just a generally good idea. Tell us what you think by reviewing. Happy thoughts on yall. **


	5. Heart's crime

**A/N: Please review ~ sci-fi **

Chapter 4: Heart's crime.

Heart came home from working with Applejack and Big Macintosh. Luna's moon had risen and Heart was happy to go home. He approached his humble home and noticed that the door was wide open. "What the hell?" Heart increased his speed. He came in and his things were everywhere. All the cabinets and drawers were opened. He heard a voice come from the back.

"Shut up bitch!" Heart didn't recognized the voice and ran back to the room. When he entered he saw a unknown stallion earth pony standing at the foot of his bed. The pony had bruises and cuts on him. That is not what upset Heart. On the bed was Scootaloo. She lay conscious but barely. She was covered in bruises and cuts. She had been beaten vigorously. She looked dazed and didn't realize what was going on.

Heart became enraged. He turned his focus to the unknown stallion, who had now noticed Heart. The stallion had a dark green coat and a rough black mane. The intruder spoke. "Oh great another pony. I was just about to have fun with this one."

Heart had fury in his eyes. His usual red eyes changed color into the look of fire. "What are you doing in my home!?"

The earth pony was not phased by Heart and answered in a casual almost joking manner. "Well at first I just wanted to make a profit but this bitched showed up and gave me some trouble so I returned the favor."

Heart was going to make this pony rot in prison for hurting Scootaloo. "I am going to get the police and you are coming with me. If you comply I will let you live."

The stallion laughed. "You? You are just some scrawny unicorn." The stallion looked over to Scootaloo lying on the bed. "Plus I was thinking of having some fun with this mare here. It has been a while since I felt a mare." The stallion had a wicked grin.

Heart had planned on letting the scum live but the earth pony had sealed his fate with those words. Heart said nothing as he jumped into the earth pony stabbing him with his horn. The pony screamed in pain. Heart drew back and shot the pony with a burst of magic. The magic left a crater in the pony's chest. Blood splattered the room. The stallion looked at his chest with horror. Heart broke both of the earth pony's fore legs making him topple to the floor. After he landed Heart stepped closer to the dieing pony. Blood pooled on the floor. The pony no longer had the lungs to scream. Heart had punctured both of them and the pony lay on the floor grasping for oxygen. Heart looked down on the weakling. Heart raised is hoof and with a quick deliberate strike smashed the intruders skull in. "Scum."

Heart looked to Scootaloo. He focused his magic and healed her. It didn't take long for her to come to her senses.

She looked around. She could see red dots everywhere. She didn't understand where it came from or what it was. She looked at the foot of the bed and understood. The intruder that had beaten her lay dead on the ground. She had never seen anything so brutal done to a pony. His face was unrecognizable. It was a mess of red. Scootaloo mouth dropped. "Oh dear Celestia! What happened?" She looked to Heart.

Heart looked at the earth pony and then back to his beloved pegasus. "I am sorry. I will clean this up. I had to do something, he hurt you and was planning worse. I healed you after… taking care of him. Please go into the living room and I will handle everything."

Scootaloo looked at the horror that surrounded her. "Should I get the police?"

Heart shook his head. "No. It will not help now. Please go to the living room Scoot."

Scootaloo listened to Heart and went to the living room. She saw all of their stuff everywhere. She began to pick up to keep her mind off of what had happened. She remembered coming home and seeing that earth pony rummaging through their stuff. She confronted him and yelling started and then he hit her. She fought back but he was stronger. After that it was a blur. She couldn't remember how she got to the bed room.

A bright light came from the bed room. Scootaloo called back. "Heart? What are you doing?"

Heart came from the back room. "I was just cleaning. Do we have trash bags?"

Scootaloo nodded. "Under the sink."

Heart took a white trash bag from under the sink. He also grabbed a broom and dust pan before going back to the bed room. Heart returned with the trash bag. It was about half full but didn't look as Scootaloo expected. "What is in the bag?" Heart didn't answer he just opened the bag so that she could see inside. She looked inside and saw ash. No body parts, just ash.

Heart took the bag outside. When he came back in the orange pegasus questioned him. "What just happened?"

Heart acted as if nothing had happened. "I just took out the garbage."

Scootaloo didn't want any of it. "Stop the bullshit! Give me straight answers. I know that there was a stallion and I know what I saw when I left the room. Tell me what happened!"

Heart looked to his love. "I will not lie to you. I just wanted to shield you but if you want to really know I will tell you."

The mare had a stern face. "I do."

Heart sighed. "Very well. I came home and saw the house messed up. I heard a voice from the room and went back to investigate. I saw that stallion standing over you. I told him to leave but he said no. He then suggested what he was going to do to you. I-"

Scootaloo cut him off. "What was he going to do to me?"

Heart had hoped she wouldn't notice what he said. "He said that… He said he was going to… He said he was going to rape you Scoot. That fucker said he was going to rape you." Heart began pacing. "I lost control of myself. He had to pay for even thinking such a thing. I wanted to make him pay, so I did. I stabbed him and then blew a chunk out of his chest. He was still standing so I broke his legs and crushed his skull with my hoof." Heart brought his hoof up. It still had blood on it.

Scootaloo was shocked. She didn't know how to react to this. Heart had killed a pony. He had taken another pony's life. She had never even heard of a murder in Ponyville. She didn't know what this meant. "What should we do? Should we tell the authorities?"

Heart shook his head. "No. That will only complicate things. We just need to forget it happened. We did nothing wrong and there is no need to do anything."

"But Heart. You killed a pony! This is no small thing!"

Heart put his hoof up to her mouth. "Shhh. Do you want some pony to hear you? I know what I did and don't regret it one bit. Now you need to come to terms with it."

Scootaloo couldn't believe this. Heart wasn't freaking out at all. He was uncannily calm. "How can you be calm right now!?"

Heart knew why he was calm. "I am fine because I have seen this before." Heart let it slip.

Scootaloo didn't understand. "What do you mean you have seen this before?"

Heart had let it out and there was no taking it back now. He had to make his choice whether to come clean or lie to Scootaloo. He wouldn't lie to Scootaloo. "I have killed a pony before."

"What!"

Heart had to calm this situation. "Calm down. How about I explain everything tomorrow? It has been a long day for both of us. We both need our rest. Let me fold out the couch and we can sleep there."

Scootaloo had too much on her mind and simply nodded. Heart transformed the couch into a bed. He was glad that he had paid for this couch incase of guests. Heart went to his mom's old room. They kept extra stuff in the closet. Stuff like photos albums, spare blankets and pillows, stuff that wasn't used all the time but every now and then was good to have. When he came back Scootaloo still standing in the middle of the living room zoned out.

Heart sat the blanket and pillows on the couch. Heart ushered Scootaloo to the couch. "Come on Scoot. Lay down and sleep. We will solve everything tomorrow." The couple laid down on the couch together. They laid for a few minutes and Heart noticed that Scootaloo was just staring at the ceiling blankly. Heart wanted peace for her. He performed a spell to help her sleep. It didn't take long for her lids to close and her breathing to relax. Heart fell asleep soon after.

Scootaloo woke up late. The sun was high in the sky. A plate with some greens sat on the table in front of her. She looked around and saw Heart in the kitchen fixing his plate. Scootaloo felt odd. "Heart I had the weirdest dream."

He turned and looked to her. He frowned as he shook his head. "Look at where you are laying."

She did and realized that she had slept on the couch. "Then you really did?"

Heart came over and sat next to her. "Yes and we will talk about what happened. I promise to answer your questions truthfully."

Scootaloo didn't know how to take this. She had questions but she wasn't sure if she wanted the answers. It all seemed so unreal, like she was just in a play. "Well I know why you… took care of the burglar but you said you have killed another pony. Is that right?" Heart nodded. "Who was it?"

Heart looked to the floor. "I-I killed my brother."

"What!" Scootaloo never met Heart's brother but she did remember when he went missing. "That was a big thing when we were young. Every pony said that he must have a flying accident or just ran off. Why did you do it?"

Heart was in a tuff place. He knew why he did it and didn't think Scootaloo would understand. "I don't think I can explain why I did it verbally. I am going to let enter my mind. You will understand then." Scootaloo nodded and Heart took her into his mind. In his younger years it was a dark void but now his mind automatically pictured his and Scootaloo's home.

Scootaloo and Heart liked to do this every now and then and was not phased by her surroundings. "What do you want to show me?"

"I want to show you that night. I want to let you feel what I felt, to know what I thought, to see what I saw. But before you see that you need to see my brother." Heart proceeded to show her all of his memories of his brother. Everything from the small to the large. From simple annoyances like spills to the times he was nearly killed by Fire Flash. Scootaloo saw everything. All leading up to his last memory of Fire Flash. She saw him burn the cape and walk out of the room, then the memory cut out.

"There was more. What happened after that?"

Heart shook his head. "You do not want to see what happened next. After that I ran after him and ended his life. You felt what I felt. You saw what I endured. You KNOW why I did it. I did it because of you. The same reason I ended that burglar. Because you are the most important thing in my life. How do you feel now?"

This made things clear for Scootaloo. She knew all she needed to she saw everything and did know that Heart did it because of his feelings for her. "I need to think about this. I can't tell what I feel yet. Give me time and I will."

"As you say." Heart stopped performing the spell. The two looked at each other. "What now?"

Scootaloo had to make this decision on her own. "I want you to leave. Come back later and I will tell you what I have decided."

Heart did as she said and headed for the door. "I love you Scoot."

He left the pegasus alone. This was a hard decision for her. _'What do I do? He has killed ponies. The burglar was understandable, he would have hurt us. That was self defense. But his brother. He killed his brother. That was murder. I felt all the pain though. I know what he went through. I don't think I could deal with that. I don't think I could kill a pony either. What should I do? Should I turn him in?_

_Should I stay with him? I know he loves me. I know that he did both of them for me. I felt what he felt. But he killed them. He didn't just kill one pony. He has killed two. He killed one of his family. But he has given me so much. He loves me. He is the kindest pony I know. He gives Fluttershy a run for her money. Do I betray him and turn my back to him or do I sweep this under the rug? What do I do? What do I do!?'_ The mare was left in her home with her thoughts.

Heart went to the library to talk to Twilight. He knocked and waited for an answer. Twilight opened the door. "Hello Heart. What brings you by?"

Heart looked down. "I just wanted to talk. Is that ok?"

Twilight could see that the stallion had something bugging him. "Yeah, come on in." She let him enter the library.

Heart looked around. "Where is Spike?"

"He is with Rarity. Those two spend a lot more time together since their transformation." Twilight wanted to know what was bugging Heart. "Why do you look so down?"

Heart waved his hoof. "Don't worry about that. I want to talk about you."

Twilight could tell that was not what was getting to Heart. "What about me?"

"I want to talk about you being a princess."

"I have been a princess as long as you have known me. What is so important about it now?"

"I want to talk about your royal duties."

Twilight didn't really like talking about this. "I don't have any really. I make an appearance when we have rulers from other countries show up and I attend some meetings. I basically look pretty and listen. I don't make any decisions."

"That is the problem! You need to make a change. You have power. You can make a difference. You can change this country for the better. Tell the rulers that you want to help. Tell them you are ready for responsibility. You are a one of a kind Twilight. You can solve problems no other can. Make a change!"

Twilight hadn't thought about it before. _'Maybe Heart is right? What am I doing? I don't really do anything. What am I supposed to be doing? What is my place now?'_

Heart saw that Twilight was thinking and didn't want to disturb her. _'It has been long enough anyway.' _Heart teleported to just outside his home. "Please make the right choice Scoot. I can't take losing you." Heart entered the home. Scootaloo was sitting on the couch waiting for him. The couch was folded up and back to it's normal state. Scootaloo looked to Heart and patted the seat next to her. Heart sat next to her left. "What have you decided?' Heart feared the worse.

Scootaloo looked into Heart's eyes. "I don't support what you did but I love you too much to let you go." Scootaloo came closer and snuggled up to Heart. "I will never let you go."

Heart was happy she didn't disown him. Heart draped his fore legs around Scootaloo. "And I will forever love you. Nothing will ever stand in the way of that. I will make sure of that."

Scootaloo had a topic to discuss before all this drama happened. " Before any of this happened I wanted to ask you something."

"What was that honey?"

"Well the end of the school year is coming up and I wanted to know if we could go on a vacation?"

Heart thought about it for a second. "It is your last year so why not? How long do I have before I need to pack?"

Scootaloo had been counting the days down. "You have three weeks before I am out."

"I have some money saved up so we should be fine. We might even be able to go out of country. How does the Griffon Kingdom sound?"


	6. Tirek

**A/N: This chapter is going to jump around a lot so that everyone knows. This chap is to fill in the differences between the episode and the story. If we didn't write about it than assume it happen just like in the episode. ~ sci-fi. **

Chapter 5: Tirek.

The three weeks came and went quickly, it may have not seemed like it to Scootaloo though. Heart went on vacation with Scootaloo to the Griffon Kingdom. They had never left the country before so Heart thought it would be an interesting experience but something was nagging at Heart. He didn't feel right about leaving but he had promised Scootaloo and didn't plan on breaking it. While he was leaving for the train station Nick got a letter for him and Twilight to show up at the castle. "Hey Twi, looks like we are going on a train as well. Celestia asked for you and Chaotic says I should go with you." Twilight looked over the letter and knew it wasn't Celestia that wrote the letter, the hoof writings was terrible. "Ok then, think we should take anything? Like do you think this is a test?" Twilight started to do her usual freak out when Nick stopped it in her tracks by kissing her.

Twilight went ridged at the surprise touch but relaxed after she realized what happened. Then she kissed back happy to have somepony special to keep her calm and break her bad habits. When Nick broke the kiss he smiled back at her. "feel calmer now?" Twilight smiled dreamily and nodded happily. "Good, now let's get the tickets for the train so we can get there sooner." Twilight nodded and followed Nick as they went to get their tickets and wait for the train. The time came and went quickly with the loving pair talking to pass the time. So they boarded the train and enjoyed their time together as they went on their way.

Meanwhile:  
Chaotic and Luna waited in the throne room as Princess Cadence came into view. It was Luna who addressed her first. "I am glad you made it. this will involve all of us working together for this to work." Cadence came up to Luna and hugged her before backing up and nodding. "I know this will be more important than almost anything we have faced in a while. I was terrified when Celestia told me who was on the loose. So what are we going to do?" Dan smiled lightly to try and calm her. "we don't know the details yet, Tia is working with Discord on a plan we started this morning. So when Twilight and Nick gets here we will tell everypony the plan." Cadence didn't look as happy to see Chaotic. She had not been that long since she had received her powers back. But she would not spread hate because of the past.

Celestia and Discord soon joined them and waited for the newest Princess to arrive with Chaotic's best friend, besides Discord anyway. Luckily the wait was short and Twilight walked in with Nick by her side after a few more minutes of waiting. Dan smiled seeing the two so close and happy. It was nice to see his friend and Twilight happy with each other. Even if it would end soon. They hoped it would be just a short time, but it would all have to go according to plan. Celestia greeted them first. "Hello my dear student, it is nice to see you, I just wish it was under better circumstances." That's when Twilight's face went from happy to scared.

The next few minutes were spent telling Twilight about who had escaped from Tartarus and why he was a threat to all of Equestria. This being was known as Tirek, a centaur with the power to steal magic from other beings. But he could take more than just the magic of unicorns, he could take the magic of flight from Pegasus, and the strength from earth ponies. He was a being that only wanted power, and would steal all the magic from every living thing until nothing was left and he could rule over everything. Celestia and Luna had locked him up many years ago in Tartarus and didn't think he would ever get out with the guardian watching him. But unfortunately the unforeseen is often soon seen.

"So what are we going to do princess!? How are we going to stop him!?" Celestia rose a hoof to calm her student. "we are already coming up with a plan. Discord was once like him and so we are sending him to try and stop Tirek before he can become to strong to stop. If that fails, then that will be where you come in. but until we see how this goes you are here just in case. So please try and relax until we see what happens." Twilight and Nick were surprised to hear any of this and hoped that this plan would work, but had little hope that it would. Twilight was still unsure that sending a used to be power hungry power to stop another power hungry power would be a wise idea. But she could hope.

Luna's moon lit the pavement. Small pieces of trash littered the ground. A unwary unicorn read his news paper as a cloaked villain crept behind him. Tirek approached his prey. The unicorn turned to face his enemy. "Hello Tirek." Discord had surprised his foe. He changed form into his regular attire.

Tirek realized who this was now. "I didn't realized you escaped your stone prison, Congratulations. How is some one of your stature doing these days?" Discord liked friendly conversation but had a job to do. "Well if you really want to know. I have taken up bounty hunting." Discord snapped and a metal cage appeared around Tirek.

"What is the meaning of this Discord?" Tirek shook the bars in a feeble attempt to escape. Discord gave a chuckle. "What you don't like it? I thought it very fitting of you. Wait I can make it better." Discord gave Tirek a orange jumpsuit. Tirek found no humor in it. "There is no need for this. There is enough room in Equestria for both of us."

Discord had his orders. "Well as much as I don't care if you roam free or not, Tia wouldn't be too happy about me letting you go." Tirek was confused. "Tia? Do you mean Celestia? Princess Celestia?" Discord popped into the cage next to Tirek. "Bingo you win boy oh. You have won a all expressed pay trip to Tartarus!" Confetti fell on the two.

"You are helping the ponies? You?" Tirek talked as if he had tasted something rotten. "Well believe it or not there is a few who are just great."

"They are ponies! Weak, pathetic ponies! You are Discord! The god of chaos. Ruler of all things unharmonious. You cant be seriously helping them." Discord knew he wasn't the same as he was before but he was happy. "I am helping them. They have giving me something that I never had before, friendship."

Tirek thought of a way to get out of this situation. "They have given you lies. They bind you with their rules. They keep you from doing what you do. They won't let you be yourself. That is not friendship. That is control. They have tricked you."

Discord heard his words and saw some truth, or what he thought was true. "No. They don't control me. I can do as I please." Tirek knew this wasn't true. "Really? So you can let me go? You can go around and make your famous cotton candy clouds? You can make change the day to night whenever you please?"

Discord could not do these things. Celestia and the other rulers would be mad and punish him. "I don't need to listen to you. You flight will be leaving soon." Tirek saw the weakness. "That is where you are wrong. You do need to listen. You just don't want to because you see the truth. You see how they have tricked you. But there is no need for you to feel this way. Join me Discord. I will not bind you. I will let you be your true self. Together we will rule this land." Tirek held out his hand. "As friends."

Discord saw his chance. He took it. Discord shook Tirek's hand and made the cage disappear. "Together." Tirek smiled knowing his lie had worked. "Always."

Celestia had gathered all alicorns in the throne room to deliver the news. Every pony looked to her waiting for her to speak. "I will not beat around the bush. Discord has betrayed us. He has sided with Tirek and is helping him. Tirek has started to steal pegasi and earth pony magic. He will come for alicorn magic as well. We must not let him have it."

Twilight was scared. "What do we do? How can we stop him?"

"We must get rid of our magic."

Nick didn't understand. "Wait, you can just get rid of your magic?"

Luna explained. "No. We must transfer our magic to a new host."

"Who?"

Chaotic spoke up finally. "Twilight. It has to be Twilight. Tirek knows of Luna, Cadence, and Celestia."

Nick looked to Twilight, than back to Dan. "Why Twilight? Why can't you or I do it?"

"Because we don't know how our bodies will react to it. For all we know our bodies could reject it and that could get ugly. I also don't know if we can restore our magic if it leaves us so we won't be giving up our magic either."

"I don't want her doing this. It could be dangerous. I coul-."

Nick would have continued but was cut off by Twilight putting a hoof on his shoulder. "I can do this. I want to do this."

Celestia couldn't waste the time. "Then it is settled. Twilight will take our magic."

Nick wanted to help. "What should I do? I can't just sit here and do nothing."

Chaotic had thought of something for them to do. "You and I will play our part, don't you worry. I will tell you later though."

Luna had to say something. She walked over to her sister. She talked low so that the other ponies wouldn't hear her. "Are you ok sister?"

Celestia didn't catch on at first. "I have no problem giving up my powers."

"That is not what I mean. I am talking about Discord."

Celestia seemed like she wasn't phased by it. "I am fine." Luna didn't understand how she could be fine with this. But she didn't get a chance to question any further. Celestia began the process of transferring their power to Twilight.

When the whole ordeal was over Nick stood staring at Twilight. Chaotic's focus was on Luna to make sure she was going to be ok without her magic. His only thought was that it was a good thing that Moon was already born or this could have been worse. Nick was going to go to Twilight but Chaotic stopped him. "I'm sorry buddy but we got other things to attend to."

Nick couldn't see a more pressing issue than this right now. "What do we need to do besides help out?"

"Baby-sit." Chaotic explained how they needed to hide along with the foals. Chaotic was so proud. Luna had carried the foal and given birth with no complications. Celestia had thought it a good idea to share the experience with Luna shortly after finding out Luna got pregnant. Discord had messed around with Chaotic about giving her the idea. The foals were now three. "He doesn't know about us or that we have kids. So we will need to keep them safe from him so he doesn't steal their still developing alicorn magic. That would be worse if he got it for it would allow his powers, all of them, to develop further." Nick nodded in understanding of their mission to save the kids as the ones they loved saved the kingdom.

Nick and Chaotic took the kids out of the castle that night. The kids rode on their backs happily. That's when Moon Love talked into Chaotic's ear. "Where are we going daddy?"

Chaotic turned to see his daughter. "We are going to go camping. We will be out in the country, away from most ponies. It will be fun."

"Is mommy coming?"

"No. Mommy is going to be busy with royal stuff. But don't worry we won't be gone long. And we will bring mommy along next time." Moon settled down on Chaotci's back with a smile. "Ok daddy."

For most the day Nick and Chaotic were occupied with the foals but when they fell asleep Nick questioned Chaotic. "Dan … I mean Chaotic. What are we doing out here in the woods? Why aren't we there helping Twilight or Luna?"

Chaotic knew what he must do. "We need to be here. The foals need us. You shouldn't worry so much. Twilight is strong. She will be fine. After this she will be even stronger."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing. Don't worry about it."

"Ok well what the hell is up with Discord? You know the guy. Why would he betray us like this."

Chaotic looked over at the sleeping foals. "Watch what you say around the foals. Don't be harsh on Discord. When this is all over it will become clear."

"Stop being vague. Tell me what is going on."

"I will in time. Get some sleep Nick. We might need it."

Nick knew well enough that Chaotic wasn't going to tell him anything until he wanted to or his plan was threw. So he laid down to sleep even when he was to worried to sleep.

Tirek stomped into the throne room. He tried to steal the ruling alicorns' magic. "What have you done with your magic!" he bellowed at them.

Celestia sat on her throne weakened but determined. "We will not let you steal our powers."

Discord looked at Celestia. He looked into her eyes and felt shame. For a second he regretted what he had done. He thought about all the fun he had with his friends. He thought about Illusion. _'I don't have to give him up. Tirek will let me keep my son. It is too late to change my mind about the other ponies. They wouldn't forgive me now. I would just be turned to stone again.' _He looked away. He looked at the amulet Tirek had given him. "I know what they have done with their magic. They have given it to Twilight. She was made a princess while you were locked away. She has a home in Ponyville."

So they went to Ponyville to find this new princess. Then Tirek betrayed Discord and Discord realized what he had done was one of the biggest mistakes of his life. Twilight saw her destiny and gave her power for her friends, including Discord. She restored harmony to Equestria using the powers the box gave her and her friends.. She had returned all ponies their powers and all was well, for now. Ponies gathered around to see Princess Twilight's new castle.

Celestia wrote a letter and sent it to Chaotic, telling it was done. After disbanding the crowd of awe struck ponies. Celestia, Luna, Discord, Cadence, and the main six waited for Chaotic and Nick to arrive. It was a few minutes of awkward silence before Dan and Nick arrived. They had brought the foals home before coming.

Discord didn't waste time after they arrived. He spoke up. "I am sorry every pony. I failed you. I betrayed you." Discord was so different. He lost all of his playful attitude. It was hard to see since he stared at the floor but a tear rolled down his face.

Celestia came closer and raised his head so that he looked her in the eyes. "Don't feel so bad. It wasn't your fault. I forgive and love you." She gave the draconequus a kiss.

"But how can you so easily forgive me?"

Celestia had to tell truth. "Because it is my fault you did this. I put a spell on you so that you would betray us and set things in motion. It had to be done."

Every pony in the room was shocked with the exception of Chaotic. Twilight couldn't see why it had to be done. "What! Why would you do such a thing? You endangered so many ponies."

Celestia gave a heavy sigh before she replied. "I know but it was so that you and your friends could grow. If Discord had not been influenced to do this than I don't know if you would have ever come this far. Then we would remain helpless against the threats against Equestria and you would have remained unfulfilled in your role as a princess."

Nick thought this unnecessary to put Twilight in danger like that. "This is seriously fucked up. How could you do this? Twilight could have been seriously hurt."

Chaotic stepped up and defended Celestia. "Calm down Nick. It needed to be done. We knew the risks and were hopeful that everything would be alright. We were right too. Because Twilight took her destiny in her own hooves everything thing is now fine. And everypony is better off because of it."

Nick looked ready to continue but Discord didn't want any more fighting today. "Every pony please stop. I just want us to be happy. There is no need for anymore fighting." He looked at Celestia. "I want to put this behind us and be with the ones I love." Celestia kissed Discord once again and her horn lit up, removing the spell completely and any affects that remained. Even some of his guilt, though some of it still remained. But the fighting was over he hoped.

Every pony agreed and tried to move on from what had happened. Then Nick had an idea. He got Twilight's attention. "Hey Twi, I bet Heart would like to know about this. I am sure he would love to know you have a castle of your own now. And cool new magic to."

Twilight hadn't thought about Heart. "Yeah! I will send him a letter soon. First we need to explore this castle!" she sounded excited and Nick followed her into the castle to explore.


	7. Lantern

Chapter 6: Lantern

Heart's Vision and Scootaloo were having fun in the griffon kingdom. A few days into the trip Heart received a letter from Twilight about Tirek. He was worried and wanted to go home but he wouldn't deny Scootaloo this. She was having way too much fun.

After the vacation was over Heart made it a priority to go see Twilight. He brought Scootaloo along to see the castle. It was a sight. Heart had not seen any castles. Scootaloo had been to Canterlot when she was younger but seeing such a magnificent building was a new experience to Heart. He had seen pictures of Canterlot and thought this castle looked completely different. Heart and Scootaloo walked in admiring it. Twilight was sitting on her throne reading a book. She was alone.

Heart walked up to the distracted mare and taped his hoof on the floor to get her attention. She looked up and saw him. "Hello Heart. Did you trip go well?"

Heart smiled. "Yeah it went well but really Twilight? You now have a huge castle and a nice throne and what do you choose to do. Read a book."

"There is nothing wrong with reading a book. This one is quite interesting. It is about two ponies fighting for their lives in a ruined Equestria."

"I am sure it is. You said you wanted to talk to me about something?"

"Yeah I did." She looked at Scootaloo. "It is nice to see you Scootaloo but can I talk to Heart alone? Spike is somewhere around here." obliged and went off to look for Spike. Twilight waited tell Scootaloo was far enough away. "How do I say this? I want you to stay here."

Heart was confused. "What? What do you mean stay here?"

"Like live in the castle."

"I am not saying no but why do you want that?"

Twilight was a little scared about the situation. "I honestly don't know what I am doing. I would love to have you around to help me."

"Why me?"

"You are one of the most gifted unicorns I know. Your help would be invaluable to me. You can stay here and help me when I need you. I can pay you as well. Celestia says that now all taxes for Ponyville go to me. Ponyville is now my responsibility. I need your help Heart. I need my friends here with me."

"I will stay and help as long as Scootaloo can stay here with me."

"Of course. So we have a deal?"

Heart thought about it. It didn't take long to make up his mind. This would make him one step closer to his goal. "Yes. I will move here and assist you." Heart and Twilight continued to talk about the events that took place while he was away. How Tirek had stolen ponies power. How Celestia had influenced Discord. Everything.

Scootaloo returned. "Hey HV I got to go. I promised Rainbow that I would race her when I got back."

Heart looked up at the orange pegasus. "Go ahead. I need to talk to you but that can wait 'til later."

It took a week for Heart to move in to the castle. Scootaloo had no problem moving. Applejack understood that Heart could no longer work at Sweet Apple Acres. It had been a few days since everything had been unpacked. Twilight had told Heart that she was having special company over and wanted him to attend dinner. Heart wondered who was coming. Twilight and Heart were seated and waiting for Twilight's company to arrive. Spike took care of everything. Heart waited and was surprised when Spike walked in escorting Chaotic Love and Luna.

Twilight stood up and greeted them. Heart bowed to his rulers. "Hello, I am Heart's Vision."

Luna and Chaotic walked in and smiled. Luna spoke first. "Hello Hearts Vision. it is nice to meet you."

then Chaotic spoke up in a happy tone. "Nice to finally meet you. i have heard a bit about you from Twilight and Nick. and no need to bow to us. we are all friends here so no need to be so formal." Luna agreed with what Chaotic said and they went to sit down after Chaotic said hello to Spike and asked how he and Rarity were doing. Luna turned to Heart and asked a simple question. "So how is helping Twilight out in the castle going?"

Heart was surprised that they knew about it. "I haven't done anything yet but I am hoping I can soon. I want to prove my worth."

Twilight had known Heart long enough to know he would. "You will. I haven't had anything for him to do yet but Heart is a very talented unicorn. I haven't see a unicorn with his level of magic. He learned faster than I did when I was his age. He is determined as well."

Heart was blushing. "Thank you Twilight but you give me too much credit."

Twilight wasn't going to lie about his skill. "I don't want to hear that from you. You learned to teleport within a year. Every other filly and colt in your class could barely perform levitation magic."

Luna was impressed by this news and Chaotic was happy to hear it. "Wow that is impressive in deed. you must be well gifted if you were able to do this." Dan agreed. "Ya that's one heck of an accomplishment. good work, and can't wait to see what you can do. so what do you want to do with all that power? i mean do you have a goal you are working for?"

Heart loved to help ponies in any way he could, he did not hide his plans. "I want to be a royal adviser. I want to help all ponies across Equestria. It is all our duty to help each other as much as we can. I think that I can be the most helpful as an adviser."

Dan smiled liking to hear sompony that likes to help other as much as he did and had a plan to do just that. "Its good to hear somepony that wants to help other and has a plan to do so. so do you know how to do that? I mean besides just help Twilight with errands." he gave a small laugh at his own little joke hoping that this pony had a sense of humor.

Heart had been thinking recently and had gotten an idea. "Maybe I will help the homeless and disabled ponies in Equestria." Heart turned to Twilight. "May I start a program for them? We can talk about the specifics later but do you think that would be ok?"

Twilight wasn't expecting such a question. "I guess. I don't see the harm in it."

Heart was glad his request was granted. He turned to Chaotic. "There is your answer my king. I will begin with preparations after you leave."

Dan smiled as Luna looked shocked. "Its good to know that you have plans and are putting them into motion. so what kind of work do you plan to have them do?"

Heart was unsure. "I do not know yet but I will find something. Let us speak of now though. How is your foal doing? I hope recent events weren't too stressful for her."

Dan smiled at the thought of his and Luna's foal. "she is a resilient little one and i took her and Illusion on a camping trip to make sure they didn't really know what was going on and stayed safe. then we told them what happened after we got back and things were under control. so she took the news well and it hasn't hurt her thoughts on Discord either, which is a good thing. so do you and Scootaloo plan of having foals of your own?"

Heart chuckled. "Oh I don't think we are ready for that quiet yet. We are a little bit too young for that. I'm not saying that Scoot wouldn't be a good mom I just think that she deserves some time to explore the world and try new things before having that responsibility. Don't put the thought in her head either. Once she has her mind set on something she tends to not let it go."

Dan, Luna and Twilight chuckled at that knowing how true it was. Twilight spoke on it first. "she gets that from hanging out with Rainbow Dash most of her life." the others agreed and Dan had a question to ask. "so what does that mean she has her mind set on now? going to try for the wonderbolts like her hero? or does she have some other idea in mind?"

Heart had many conversations about this subject with Scootaloo. "We have talked about it but it is not clear what she wants to do. She says she doesn't want to be a wonder bolt. She won't say but I think she is just content with being with me. Every time I talk about her having a goal and being happy she always comes back with why can't she be happy with me. I don't care what she does as long as she is happy." Heart had a thought and accidentally said it out loud. "I would die for her happiness." He immediately looked around in fear to see if the others heard him.

Twilight looked at him confused but didn't say anything.

but unluckily for Heart Dan heard it and wasn't about to let it slide by like it was nothing. "Its good to hear that your love is that strong. Both because that is rare and because I think all my friends deserve that kind of love. My only words of advice for you though is, just because your willing to don't go out and get yourself killed because, you for some reason made it a goal. This is a powerful love and makes powerful decisions, so just make sure that power doesn't lead to the wrong decisions." then Dan relaxed and went back to smiling. "Do that and you two will be happy your whole life long." Luna just looked at Dan with a raised eye brow knowing this wasn't the normal Dan and that something was up that she didn't know about. but she let them continue to talk and would ask him about it later.

Heart didn't have much to say on the subject. "Thank you for the words of advice. I will try my best to follow them."

Twilight wasn't comfortable with this subject and wished to change it. "Chaotic I wanted to know if you are ok with Heart having access to Canterlot's libraries. I don't think I will have time to teach him as much. He can learn spells on his own extremely well. He is responsible. He asked me about this but I think he may be too shy to ask himself."

Heart looked at Twilight. _'Really? Did you really just do that?'_

Dan laughed it off and looked to Luna who nodded before saying anything. "yes that is fine with us, we will get him a pass the next time he comes to Canterlot. Just let us know your around and we will get you that and make sure you know where everything is. and if you ever need anything just let me know. I have read just about everything in there so if you can't find it I am sure I will know where it is. so just let me know any time you want help with anything." Luna agreed and offered to help as well but it seemed Heart might be more willing to ask Dan than Luna for some reason. "So what kind of spells do you like to use the most?"

Heart had much experience with varieties of spells. "Well I guess it would matter on the situation. There is so many spells that are useful. It is uncommon to find a spell that has no use. If you asked me what spells I think are the most useful it would probably be the levitation spell of course because it is simple and has so many practical uses. I think my favorite spell would be the mind reading spell though. I have even altered it so that non unicorns can enter the mind of a unicorn. I also like shield spells but I don't use them often because there is no need. It is usually so calm here in Ponyville. There is no point in using a combat spell in a peaceful town. I would like to try out my combat magic but Twilight is not partial to sparing and most unicorns in town can't keep up with me."

Dan smiled at hearing these things. "I am glad to hear that I'm not the only one that likes the mind magic. and that kind of magic can be useful. and maybe when i have time i might be able to test your abilities. i never mind having a fun little spar. what do you think?" Dan smiled hoping that he would take the offer so he could fully understand this stallions powers and how strong he could be. Dan still believed that your true thoughts come through in the heat of battle with someone. and if that came through like it had in the past Dan would know more about him and have a full thought on how he would treat him and act around him.

Heart felt a little uneasy about fighting his king but wanted to test his own ability. He might have said something about Nick but he didn't want Twilight to know about it. "I would like a chance to test myself. Maybe when I go to Canterlot to see the Library. I don't think I will fair that well against the raw magic ability of an alicorn though."

The night continued with friendly conversation until the rulers left. Heart woke up the next day looking for Twilight. He found her in a smaller room that she had already managed to put filled bookshelves in. She was sitting in a chair near a window for the extra light. She was reading but it seemed more intense than normal. Heart concluded that she must be reading something informational.

"Twilight." She didn't look away from her book. "Twilight." Nothing. "Twilight!"

She Finally looked at Heart. "Hello Heart. Do you need something?"

"Yeah I do but I want to know what has gotten you so interested that I have to yell to get your attention."

"It is a book about psychological tendencies of ponies. Stuff like why ponies do what they do. I am on a section about how trauma during childhood greatly effects how ponies act when they are older. It is saddening. There was a little filly who killed herself because of how lonely she felt. Her parents weren't dead or anything it is just that they weren't there for her. How her peers bullied her. It had me thinking about when you were younger. I still remember when I entered your mind and felt those emotions. How strong and horrible they were. What happened Heart? What was so terrible?"

Heart had not seen his day going into this direction. "It was nothing Twilight."

Twilight put the book away. "Stop lying to my Heart. You say that every time we get around the subject. Talk to me. I am your friend."

Heart looked at her for a few seconds. "Fine. It was a bad situation. I got bullied at school. That is SO horrible. I was just a colt overreacting to what was going on. Now can I talk to you about what I came here for?"

Twilight decided not to push the stallion. "Yes we can."

"I wanted to talk to you about that program I wanted to start up."

"Oh yes I already made preparations. There is a building on the outskirts of town. It is a little ways off from the border of Sweet Apple Acres. To the west. I have a map here somewhere." Twilight looked around and after some digging she found a map of Ponyville. She gave it to Heart. "I circled the area where the building is. You can use it for your program. I can give you a small amount of funding but you need to start up a charity drive so that you can continue. You also need to find some ponies for it. There is an orphanage. I marked it as well. Is there anything else you need?"

Heart couldn't think of anything else. "No Twilight. Thank you for the help." Heart left for the programs building. While on the way there he tried to think of some names for the program. _'Hmm. What to name it. Well what exactly do I want to do? I guess I should teach them some skills. Not the crap that gets taught in school but real skills like first aid. Stuff that is useful. Learning is magic? No that sounds like a slogan. Something that sounds good in conversation. Something simple. Oh I know. The lantern program. I like that.' _

Heart found the building. It looked pretty bad. The damage wasn't major but there was some. It had plants climbing the outer walls. The grass surrounding it was knee high. The roof looked damaged and the paint was peeling. The building use to be red but now it looked more brown. Heart went inside and he could swear that he smelled mold. "This place sucks."

Heart left the building to go see the orphanage. It didn't take long to find it. It seemed nice enough. There was swings and slides outside. The grass was cut and the building seemed in good condition. It was pretty much the exact opposite of the building Heart was given. '_'I guess beggars can't be choosers.'_

He went inside. It was small. The first thing Heart saw was a desk with a mare behind it. She looked nice. She was young. She had a aqua coat with a velvet main. She had a smile on her face and waited for Heart to approach. "Hello sir. How can I help you?"

Heart wasn't expecting such a nice place. He expected to find it more depressing. "Yes you can. I am here to start a program. It will help colts and fillies learn useful skills. My name is Heart's Vision. Did princess Twilight send you anything to inform you of this?"

The mare kept her happy attitude. "Yes she did. I am glad that this is happening. I am glad to say that there isn't many orphans here but the ones that are seem quiet down. Follow me." She lead Heart to a big room with beds lined up. "Children gather round. We have a visitor."

Kids stopped what they were doing and came up to the mare. Heart counted six. Three colts. Three fillies. Two unicorns. Two pegasi. Two earth ponies. Most seemed around the same age but two stood out. One who was a earlier teenager, he was a pegasus with a bright red coat and a dark purple mane and tail. The other was a very young unicorn filly with a white coat and navy blue mane and tail. The rest were on the verge of being teenagers.

Heart looked them over. He couldn't see anything wrong with most except one earth pony. The filly had a missing leg. Her front left leg was gone. There was a very small stub on her chest where it should have been. She seemed to be standing just fine with only three legs. "Hello I am Heart's Vision. I am starting a program to help ponies learn skills and I would like to know if you all would like to be a part of it."

The ponies looked at him blankly. Heart tried again. "Ok I want to help you learn skills so that you can be better than you already are. I want to make you great ponies. How does that sound?"

The red pegasus responded. "We heard you the first time. We just don't care."

Heart looked to the pegasus. The pegasus' body was fully grown and stood eye to eye with Heart. "But you should. All of you should care."

"Why is that?"

"Because this is your future. I am presenting you with an opportunity to better yourselves."

The pegasus looked smug. "Oh I haven't heard that before. What makes you so special that we should jump at the offer?"

Heart didn't like this pony's attitude. "I do not like to toot my own horn but I am skilled in magic. I devoted my time to bettering myself and now I have the knowledge to carve my way through this world."

"Prove it."

Heart decided that this brat needed to be put in his place. "What would you like to see? I know many spells. Give me a challenge and I will conquer it."

The pegasus looked around and saw the challenge. He wanted to see this pony fail and picked something impossible. "Heal Petal's leg if you are so great."

Heart looked to the earth pony with the missing leg. "You are Petal I presume?" The filly nodded. She had a tan coat and a split mane. Half of the mane was orange and half was blue. Her tail was the same. Heart looked at the leg. Then back to the cocky colt. "Very well."

Heart told the filly to be still. He concentrated. It was difficult to heal ponies much less grow a limb back. Heart had to fabricate all of the nerve and muscle then connect them to the existing ones. It took a lot of energy and he could hear gasping but after a few minutes Heart believed he had done it. The filly looked at the new leg. She moved it around. "Oh my Celestia! My leg! My leg is back!" The filly was smiling ear to ear. She looked at Heart. "You healed me. Thank you. Thank you so much!" The filly didn't hesitate to run up to him and hug him.

Heart couldn't see but he felt liquid on his coat. The filly was crying. "You are welcome. I am glad I could help." All the ponies in the room were awe struck. Heart looked to the colt who had challenged him. "Are you satisfied?"

The colt had is jaw opened wide in shock. "What? How did you do that? I thought that kind of magic didn't exist."

Heart smiled as he looked down at the filly who was still clinging to him. "It is very difficult to perform and learn but it does exist. Most unicorns can't perform healing magic without being drained so regenerating a limb is out of the question most of the time. I devoted my life to helping other ponies. I tried my hardest to learn magic so that I could make a difference. All it took was me trying. Now this filly has her leg back because I gave it my all." Heart looked to the colt and issued his own challenge. "Will you?"

The filly backed off. "I will. I want to join your program."


	8. Canterlot trip

**A/N:HEY! You, yeah you. Why haven't you reviewed? Do you know how much of a pain in the ass this is? Messaging the chapter back and fourth making sure we are happy with the work. Waiting for the other to RP the next segment. It is a lot of work doing this joint shit. If you have gotten this far than you are probably liking the story. Show your support. It can be exhausting doing this. I do it because I like bringing a story to people but is a little frustrating when no commentary is made. Please review. It means so much to me. ~sci-fi**

Chapter 7: Canterlot trip.

Heart's Vision made a list of the kids in the orphan who wanted to be part of the Lantern program. All of them signed up. Some more reluctantly than others but all came around. Before Heart became too deeply involved in the program he decided to go to Canterlot to visit the library.

"Are you going to leave me here?" Scootaloo liked Ponyville but didn't like the idea of being left alone while Heart went on a trip.

Heart had no problem letting Scootaloo coming with him. "You can go if you like. I just figured that you would want to stay here. I will be engrossed in studying so I can't keep you company. If you really want to go than plan to stay for a week. I will only be there for around four days but I might decide to stay longer."

"Ok." Scootaloo began to get her stuff ready. Heart left for Canterlot with Scootaloo by train. Scootaloo got bored of looking out the window and began to talk to Heart. "I wish you had wings. We would have been there by now if you did."

Heart wouldn't mind having wings but he preferred his horn. "Do you really wish I had wings? I think you of all ponies would miss my horn."

"I would but I mean it would be cool if you were an alicorn."

The thought had crossed his head. "I am not sure that I would like to be an alicorn. Not unless you were one as well."

Scootaloo hadn't thought about what Heart would receive besides wings. "Why?"

"The increased life span. I wouldn't want that. I wouldn't want to see you die. I couldn't live without you."

Scootaloo smiled and hugged Heart. "I guess it is for the best that you aren't then. I love you."

"I love you too." Heart believed his words. He didn't think he could live without her.

It wasn't long 'til the train met it's destination. Heart and Scootaloo checked into the hotel and dropped their stuff off before going to the castle so that Heart could get a pass to visit the restricted parts of the library. They went to the throne room where he found all four rulers. They greeted them all by bowing before Heart asked Chaotic about the pass. "I wanted to know if I could get that pass for the restricted part of the archives."

Chaotic smiles as Luna and the others looked confused. "I never said the restricted sections Heart, just the entire library that only those of higher ranks can get into. The restricted sections are for later if we think we can truly and fully trust you after reading the rest of the other parts of the library. But no worries about the mistake. And yes I have it here." Chaotic brought out a golden library card and used his magic to hoof it over to Heart and then he stood up. "I will show you there in pony, these halls can make ponies lost easily until you learn them."

Chaotic had other plans than just making sure he didn't get lost in mind but he made sure that the others and Heart didn't think any differently. "So follow me, and Scootaloo you can come as well, then I can show you a place you might like on the side of the castle while he nerds out." Chaotic gave a smile hoping he would get Heart to roll his eyes and Scoots to laugh a bit. He figured it would lighten the mood or him as a ruler.

Heart didn't see why he couldn't have access to everything. "Why can't I have access to the restricted parts? I have the knowledge and caution to be safe. I have studied with Twilight for years. There is no need to hide information from me."

Chaotic's eyes narrowed a fraction as he spoke next. "You may not think its necessary Heart but there are things in the restricted section that even we will not mess with do its dangerous and unpredictable manners. So until we can be sure that you can learn everything else without misuse that part will remain restricted. Its better to be safe than sorry." Chaotic hoped that Heart wouldn't fight him on the subject but he waited to see what would happen.

Heart felt Chaotic under estimated his abilities. He wanted to push for it but he felt that upsetting one of the rulers of his country as well as one of the most powerful ponies in Equestria would be a bad idea. "As you say."

Scootaloo gave Heart an odd look. He normally didn't act this way. He always acted so kind and fun around every pony. She decided she would ask him later.

Chaotic could feel that Herat wasn't happy about this but hoped he wouldn't go behind his back and do something stupid. And Chaotic figured he had a while before Heart finished the rest of the library. so he hoped he could get to know more about him in that time and see just what he should think about this stallion. "Let's go read then!"

Heart followed Chaotic to the library.

When they arrived Chaotic smiled and showed them in. "Most things are clearly labeled. if it isn't or you can't find it just ask the librarian and they can help you. so any questions before we leave you to it?"

Heart examined the library. It was very large and he wonder how much knowledge was contained here. He looked forward to diving in but he had to take care of Scootaloo first. "I should be fine but would you mind showing Scootaloo around Canterlot? I have been here before and seen a few of the sights but she hasn't been here since she was young."

Chaotic smiled and nodded. "That was my plan in the first place. So we will see you later Heart. And Scootaloo follow me and we will see that place on the side of the castle first. I am sure you will enjoy it."

Scootaloo followed Chaotic. "What are we going to see?"

Chaotic just smiled and told her to follow him. "Just a little training ground you might like to see. nothing too fancy. so its right up here." Chaotic opened a set of double doors and led Scootaloo onto a large set of stairs. at the bottom of the stairs there was a walk way. this walkway lead right to the flying fields of the wonderbolts where they were now training. "so this is the training grounds of the wonderbolts. in case you wanted to see it."

Scootaloo thought that this was pretty cool. "Oh Rainbow Dash would freak out if she was here." Scootaloo watched the famous pegasi train. "Heart never really cared too much about the wonder bolts. He still brought me to a few of their performances."

Chaotic smiled. "Well that was kind of him. and shows that he cares for you. So speaking of which what else do you two do together?"

Scootaloo answered his question. "We do a bunch of small stuff. Heart likes playing chess. I'm not very good at it so he wins unless he goes easy on me. We will do some athletic games, like soccer some times. Our favorite thing to do is only possible because of Heart's magic. He will do some fancy spell that lets me enter his mind. It prevents anything from interrupting our time together. We usually just talk but some times Heart will imagine up some fun things to do. Since we are in his mind we can pretty much do anything or go anywhere as long as he can imagine it. We have done this since we were young. It really helps with trust. I can feel his raw emotion towards any subject so there is no chance he can lie."

Scootaloo remembered the first time he did that spell with Scootaloo. How his emotions overwhelmed her. "It can be hard to bear if a pony's emotions are too strong. I learned that the hard way."

Chaotic was surprised to hear that Heart could do this kind of magic but he had heard he was good with magic. So he thought he would hear more about why it was hard for his love to feel his emotions. "so may I ask how you found this out? and what kind of emotions would have been strong enough to overwhelm a strong mare like you? Or even a strong filly like you were?" Chaotic laughed lightly to help lesson the tension around the question he just asked. He hoped his little light part at the end would make her smile instead of cringe but he waited to see.

Scootaloo didn't laugh but didn't mind answering the question. "Don't tell Heart I told you this but when he was young he didn't have a happy family. He doesn't really hide it but he tends to not mention it because he doesn't want ponies to think of him differently. His father died when he was young. His mother was consumed by her own emotions over that loss and forgot about Heart. She didn't take care of him or be there when he needed her. His brother was…" Scootaloo remembered Heart's memories of his brother. "His brother was horrible. He was a bad pony that hurt Heart." It took Scootaloo a while to figure out what that odd feeling that Heart got when talking about his past. "I didn't understand when I was younger but Heart had an odd feeling when it came to his life. I understand now that he didn't care. He didn't care if he died. When I was young I didn't understand because I never realized that a pony could be upset enough to want to die. I think all it would have took for Heart to give up was just one more loss." Scootaloo looked at the ground. She was saddened by her own words, knowing that they were true.

Chaotic frowned hearing about his past. and put a hoof on Scootaloo's shoulder. "I am sorry to hear that he had to go threw that. nopony should have to deal with anything like that. but I am glad that you were there to keep him strong and help form him into a strong stallion. but can I ask what happened to his family? I mean besides his father, may he rest well, what happened to his mother and brother? I am not sure I heard about anything being done about his brother with the law. so did he stop being horrible to him? or move out? and what happened with his mother? and if you don't know or want to answer that's fine to. you know I just like to be curious so anything is good to know. and if not oh well. its not like i cant stop being lazy and look it up at Ponyville." Chaotic hoped he wasn't being to forward and sounded more sympathetic then he thought he did. he did mean what he said, but even to him it just didn't sound right to say sorry and ask questions. so he just hoped Scootaloo still wanted to talk as they both watched the wonderbolts do a few new tricks for the next show that was coming up.

Scootaloo wasn't really paying attention to the wonder bolts anymore. "Well his mother OD so she is no longer with us." Scootaloo paused. She felt bad about lying. "His brother went missing when we were still young. Most ponies assume he ran off or had an accident while flying. A body was never found."

Chaotic frowned. "I am truly sorry to hear about his mother and his brother. "maybe i can get a team together and find out what happened to him." Chaotic had said this because he was getting a wired feeling that Scootaloo wasn't telling him something. so it would reveal more by seeing how she reacted to his kind offer

Scootaloo didn't know what to say. _'What do I say? Do I just say yeah? Wait no. If he does do that then they might find out what Heart did. If I say no than it would look odd.' _Scootaloo realized that she was saying nothing while Chaotic watched her. "Oh well I don't think that would be necessary. He has been missing for so long and I think he ran off. He wasn't happy in Ponyville. Wouldn't want to waste any pony's time on looking for him when he probably is living his life somewhere else."

Chaotic knew she was hiding something, and most likely lying to him but he would do this search and see what was found. But he would let her think he was going to drop it, just so they wouldn't get worried and lie more. "Ok if your sure. And from the sounds of it if he was so bad to Heart, it might not be good for him to be found anyway. I guess some things are better left alone and in the past. So what are you planning to do for a career? Are you still wanting to be one of them?" Chaotic motioned with his hoof to the wonderbolts that were still in practice. "I know Rainbow Dash is close to getting in fully. So were you planning on joining the reserves?"

Scootaloo had thought about this a lot. She wanted to follow in Rainbow's hoof steps but She didn't want to be a wonder bolt. "I don't think I want to join the reserves. I think I make a career out of my stunt shows. Other than that I don't really have any plans for the future." Scootaloo lied about the last part.

Chaotic nodded in understanding. "good luck with anything you plan to do, and if you ever need some help, just let me know and I'm sure I could pull strings. Otherwise just try and stay happy and make good choices. Do that and all will work out well I am sure."

Chaotic looked at the clock and stood. "You are free to stay and watch them as long as you like, but I must be going to my duties. so I will talk to you later. and if you ever want to talk just let me know. 'til then see ya." then Chaotic turned and walk away.

Scootaloo sat and watched the Wonderbolts for a while. She waited a while before go to the library to look for Heart. She found him reading a big book. "What you reading sweetie?"

Heart didn't react. He was too focused on reading. Scootaloo sighed. "You make fun of Twilight for it but you do it too." Scootaloo jumped on Heart's back.

"What the…" Heart fell on the floor with a loud thud under Scootaloo's weight. Heart looked at the laughing mare on top of him.

"I got you."

"What? All you did was jump on me, and nock my spell book out of my hooves."

"Well maybe got you wasn't the best wording. Just be happy I'm back." Scootaloo gave him a kiss.

Heart accepted his fate. "Oh ok you got me. Now why did you get me?"

"Well I got bored."

"That's it? You just got bored?"

"Yep."

"Well I guess I can cut this short. I need to do one more thing before I call it a day."

Scootaloo let Heart up. "What do you have to do?"

Heart dusted himself off and put the book back on the shelf where he found it. "Well there is an offer that I wanted to accept."

Heart and Scootaloo went to the throne room to look for Chaotic. He was there. Heart approached the king. "Hello my king. I wanted to know if I could accept that sparing offer you extended."

Chaotic smiled wide. "ah yes I was wondering when you would come to take me on. lets go to the training fields then. Luna would you like to watch us as well?" Luna looked both worried and excited at the aspect of seeing her husband spar with this, as she heard it, gifted unicorn. "I would like that. Sister?" Celestia and Discord decided to join them to watch this. "guard please inform the ponies that come that we are at the fields if it is urgent, and if not that we will see them when we return." The guard did as he was told and left.

The group then made their way to the training fields. "Here we are. And don't worry about if anything gets destroyed. The chaotic powers here will fix it when the fight is over. So are you ready to see what you can do? I know I am interested in seeing you in action."

Heart knew that this would be a challenge. "Let us begin then." Heart's first move was to put up a shield around his body and start his volley of magic.

Chaotic liked his planed attack but wanted to see how he would react to being tested. So he put up his own shield to stop the volley and centered a medium blast into the center of Hearts shield to see how he would react to it.

Heart teleported behind Chaotic. A column of flame came fourth from Heart's horn towards Chaotic.

Chaotic was slightly surprised by the tactic but wasn't caught off guard. a simple bubble of water appeared around him and extinguished any flame that came close. then he looked over his shoulder at him with a smirk. "Nice try, but try this on for size." then an explosion happened under Heart.

Heart shielded himself from the explosion. "This is already more interesting than the fight with Nick." Heart had a better idea. He produced a fog around the field to conceal his presence. He could see Chaotic's magical core so he had no disadvantage. He teleported several times and produce flashes of light to mimic teleporting so his location was unknown. He then created a ring of flame around Chaotic.

Chaotic just stood there with a smile. "Very nice try Heart. And nice distractions. But it's not going to be that easy to trick me. I can rival Discord in his tricks. So lets see what you do next shall we?" then Chaotic looked directly at where heart was standing and used his hoof to motion for Heart to come at him. "just be warned that it may not turn out like you think it will when you attack." Then Chaotic just stood there looking back at him waiting.

Heart smiled. "It seems this plan will not work. Time for a new one." Heart cleared the fog Heart flashed light out of his horn to create a strobe effect for a short period. Chaotic had to squint reducing his sight. Heart shot a single beam towards Chaotic. Chaotic didn't see it coming and it grazed his barrel. "Got you."

Chaotic then appeared next to heart once his guard was down over being happy that he had hit Chaotic. then Chaotic threw a hard right punch to Heart's shoulder sending him sliding to the side. this hit left Heart with a harder time moving his shoulder. "sometimes you have to take a hit to give a better one. so don't be happy when you get one hit in. it might just be the last one you land." then Chaotic stood there smirking as Heart realized that Chaotic could have ended this fight with that hit but chose to keep the fight going. "Now continue."

Heart ignored his pain. "Oh I know. Sacrifice a little to make your enemy pay." Heart Teleported next to Chaotic and moved fast to touch his horn to Chaotic's. He was successful and Chaotic saw darkness all around him. Chaotic had been in enough dreams to know what a mind looks like. But this was not his own mind. It was Heart's.

Chaotic smiled as a plan formed. "I am not sure what you planned to accomplish in your mind but it does give me a good chance to ask you some questions while you try whatever it is you are planning. So I heard about your family from Scootaloo and am sorry to hear about your mother. But I wanted to know if you knew what happened to your brother?" Chaotic waited to see what visions of hearts brother he would see and how Heart would react to Chaotic seeing them.

Chaotic felt Heart's emotions. It wasn't sadness as when he was younger. Chaotic could feel Heart become defensive. Heart did not react physically in any way. "He went missing."

"With out a trace so I have heard. I was just wondering if you had any clues as to where he might have gone off to. I might end up looking for him so that I can see what he did to you and punish him for his crimes. so can you think of a place for me to start? do you think there would be any clues at your house?" Chaotic was pushing and prying because he knew something was up and he was going to find out what one way or another. but he thought it would be better to be kind and somewhat stealthy about it.

"Not meaning to be rude but you don't know me. There is no reason for you to wnt to look into that. But if you feel that you still want to investigate I can tell you that he is probably gone. He was a coke mule so he might be far away living his life or he could have fucked up and been killed by his employer or the competition. I would love to see my brother punished for his crimes but I don't want to waste investigators time once again. They already failed once at locating him. To do it all again would be a waste of resources." Chaotic could feel Heart's emotions so he knew he was calm. Heart showed no fear. Heart had a question of his own. "If you truly wish I can show you Fire Flash's crimes now. I don't mind. What do you say?"

Chaotic thought about the offer as he spoke. "you are correct in the fact that I do not know you. And I would like to change that. And that is why I offered to look for him. so you could see that I do care about seeing justice come to fruition. And if you do not mind then yes, I will see what happened. It might tell me more about you." Then Chaotic sat down and waited.

"Very well." Heart started with a simple act of being rude. He showed him the memory of right after Heart moved to Ponyville. Fire Flash made Heart spill a pitcher of water and bust his nose on the counter. "Nothing to bad just being mean. This happened everyday. I could deal with that." Heart showed a worse memory. A time that Fire Flash nearly took Heart's life. Chaotic could feel the strong emotions that dwelled within Heart as Fire Flash deprived him of oxygen. "This happen every now and then. Not common but not that rare either. There is more I could show but how about we skip to the finale?" Heart brought up the memory of the night Fire Flash went missing. He let Chaotic see up to the point where Fire Flash ran out the door. "That was the night that my brother went missing. I am not dumb by the way. I know you aren't either. The reason he went missing is because I killed him."

Chaotic simply nodded at the information. "You surely are not in any means. And to be honest I figured something along this means. I saw the stains on your soul from killing him and one other. But he was asking for it and in a means it was self-defense. So I am guessing the other was not your mother. So may I ask who it was and why you did it? I promise you that if it was justified there will be no repercussions. I just wish to know to know what cause would make you do such a thing. I have an idea but I don't like to make assumptions. I would rather know the truth. So will you tell me the truth?"

Heart wouldn't lie about the other murder. It was justified. "The other was self defense, well kind of. A robber broke into my home. After beating Scootaloo I came home and found him. He suggested that he would rape Scoot and flipped my shit. I killed him then proceeded to heal Scoot. I got rid of the body. I had to explain to Scootaloo what happened and along the way tell her about my brother. If you wish to punish me for my crimes go ahead but don't you dare touch Scootaloo." Heart knew what mattered to him. He did not care if he had to burn in hell for an eternity, nothing would ever hurt Scootaloo and if it did he would make it pay.

Chaotic's lip twitched in anger when he heard about Scootaloo being hurt and threatened to be raped. He could tell that Heart truly cared for Scootaloo to do this for her. And brave for telling him the truth and standing up for her without caring what happened to him. "There will be nothing done for what you have done. The brother was self-protection in a way. And the burglar got what he had coming to him. ponies like that would have been killed for his cries anyway. You just stopped him before it happened which I am glad to hear. But I must beseech you not go looking for ponies like this on your own. Because if this goes from self-defense to vigilantly justice I will have to stop it. But for now you are free from any charges. So now that I know more about you how about we finish this fight outside your head?" And with that Chaotic exited Heart's mind on his own and stepped back with a smile waiting for him to make a move.

"Sorry to say my king but I already made my move. You should have looked more into why I made you go in my mind." Heart looked smug.

Chaotic rose a brow and tried to create a shield and realized that he couldn't use his magic. Then he smiled. "very good job locking my magic. I couldn't unlock it right away so even better. But I will get around it I assure you. But till then it will be fun to see what you can do against my physical strength." Then Chaotic launched forward using his wings to propel him faster and did a one two punch with the only want being to see Heart's speed and abilities.

Heart dodged the punches. He teleported a short distance giving himself some breathing room. He had trained himself in physical combat after having so much trouble fighting Nick. He put magicical bladed gauntlets on his hooves. He lobbed balls of fire at Chaotic to ensure he wouldn't stay in one place.

Chaotic saw threw this play and charged one of the fireballs and went through it. he came out the other side barely scaved. "Nice try but even without my magic I am more resilient then most because I trained my body to be so. so i wont be going where you want me to." Chaotic walked over to the side of the area where a rack of weapons were. He took the katana, his favorite weapon, in his wing. "Let us see who has trained with their weapons better." He took a fighting stance and waited for Heart to make the first move.

Chaotic jumped each of the waves as if the where hurdles. He nearly slipped on the ice covering the ground as he landed. He came closer to Heart with every jump. Once he was close enough, Heart stopped his magic and waited for Chaotic to try something. Chaotic tried to shove the katana through Heart's shield. The katana veered off on contact.

Heart stood in his bubble. "I won't cheap out on my defense. I also don't like the idea of you having a sword." Heart focused on heated the blade of the katana near the hilt. The rest of the blade fell to the ground after Heart melted the base. Heart used his magic picked up the un handled blade and began to swing at Chaotic. Dan could not use his magic to counter Heart's and was in a bind. Chaotic had no choice but to dodge and try to fall back until he could reach a weapon.

Chaotic tried to flap his wings but they refused to lift him. He was steadily pushed back but Heart failed to even put a mark on Chaotic. Chaotic became close to a weapons rack. Heart saw this and put a barrier enclosing the weapons. "I would just break them but some pony might want to use them later. I may not be able to harm you right now but you might as well give up my king. You will never break my shield, and even if you do I will just put up another."

Chaotic evaluated his situation. "Well it seems that you can't land a hit. So neither one of us is doing damage. Can we settle on a draw?"

Heart's competitive side urged him to win. _'He knows about my crime and has let it slide. If I upset him than he might say something. Plus he might find a way past my shield if I give him enough time.'_ Heart lowered his shield. "Tie sounds fair to me." Heart held his hoof out for the agreement.

Chaotic shook it. "Glad we could agree. How about we get some food to recharge?"

Heart was a little tired. "I could eat." Heart and Chaotic regrouped with the others and made their way to the castle dinning room. Heart hadn't learn much from the library but he believed that his trip was successful.

Heart made it back to Ponyville a few days later and decided to make the day about the Lantern program. He went to the orphanage to pick up the kids and bring them to the program building. Heart managed to get chairs for every pony to sit in but the building was didn't have anything else in it. The was only the second time the kids have been here. All the chairs were faced one direction where Heart planned to stand when addressing them. Heart looked at the faces staring at him waiting for him to speak. They all had the same expression. Heart knew what they were thinking. None of them knew what to do. Heart asked them. "What should we do?"

Every pony looked at him not knowing what to say. None answered.

Heart expected this. He looked to the filly known as Petal. Her full name was Sun Petal. "What do you think we should do Petal?"

Clover thought about it. "I don't know. I have never done anything like this. Is there anything we can't do? Like is there any rules we need to know about?"

Heart hadn't thought about it but now saw an opportunity. "That is a great suggestion. I don't like rules. How about we make guidelines. I didn't think about any guidelines so how about we make them together." The ponies didn't look too thrilled with the idea. "Come on now it isn't that hard to make some."

Petal seemed to be the group spokes pony for the day. "What is the point in all of this?"

"Do you mean the purpose of the program?" Petal nodded. "Well it is to better yourself. To make you a valuable member of society."

"How do we do that?"

"You try. That's how. Every pony here has the potential to be great ponies. You may even become immortalized in history. All it takes is for you to try the hardest you can."

The red pegasus from the other day spoke up. Heart learned that his name is Lightning Hoof. "Yeah sure. If it was that easy every pony would be famous. What do you know? We all were stripped of a normal life. Tell me. Do you know how it feels to not have any parents? Do you know what it is like to only have yourself?"

Heart smiled. "I was not an orphan." Lightning huffed. "BUT. I was alone at one time. My father died and my mother forgot I existed. My brother bullied me. I was alone. There was many times that I thought about ending it all. I didn't because I found a purpose. To help every pony I could. That is why I am here today. I am here to help you all. I have spent my life learning magic so that I could be powerful enough to face any force that would deter me from my purpose. The pain of my past gave me the strength to get where I am now. All of you need to do the same. Take life into your own hooves and make something of yourself."

Heart received an idea. "That is what our guidelines will be modeled after. First guideline. Help every pony you can. There is a starting point. Come on let us make these together."

Heart continued to make guidelines with the help of the fillies and colts. Clover contributed the most out of the young ponies. After some remodeling by Heart they had a list of guidelines for ponies in the program.

Heart read them out loud. "One, help ponies in every way you can. Two, Improve yourself as much as you can. Three, encourage others to better themselves. Four, never give up hope, try to see the light that shines through us all. That is what we have for now. Try to remember these. If you think of another tell us so that we can decide if it needs to be added."

Heart wanted these kids to know that he would help them. "Before I start teaching you I want you to know that you can come to me. If you need anything I will help you. You are not alone in this world. We have each other. No matter how bad life gets as long as you have some pony that cares it is worth it and I care about all of you."

Heart told the kids to think of things that they wanted to learn about. He took note of what they said and planned to bring supplies so that they could learn. They didn't have much to do so Heart led them back to the orphanage.

A few weeks past. The group began learning various skills. One pony suggested learning construction. Heart thought it was a good idea. It wasn't long before Heart saw the first opportunity to show how this program has benefited them. He proposed that they repair the building. Heart acquired funding from Twilight and they did just that. Heart did a lot of the work because his magic gave him an advantage but the orphans did help and work together.

Petal seemed to be the one that tried the hardest to learn. Heart was happy that he helped the filly. She was grateful to Heart and respected and listened to everything he said. Slowly the group followed her example. She made the group try harder in everything they did and start to look up to Heart. The only one that questioned Heart was Lightning. He didn't give as much resistance as before but still seemed to not like Heart. Lightning had no problem with Petal or any of the others. He just gave Heart trouble.

Two months passed and the group became more dependant on Heart. When Heart came to pick them up on week days they were ready and waiting for him. Lightning no longer questioned Heart. The kids began to ask Heart for things. They asked books and tools so that they could learn new skills or practice the ones that they already learned on their own. Petal asked Heart one day if they could do something to help ponies around Ponyville.

There wasn't much they could do but Heart came up with something. There was some homeless ponies in Ponyville. The group made a stand and started advertising for homeless ponies to receive help. It took a while but eventually a Unicorn stallion showed up at the Lantern headquarters. The stallion was grey with a black mane. His coat was dirty and his mane was knotted. He smelled of alcohol. He had a pencil cutie mark.

"Is this the place where I can get some help? I heard that some program was offering help to ponies in need."

Heart approached the stallion. " Yes we are the Lanterns and we are helping homeless ponies. What do you need?"

The stallion eyed the floor. "There is a lot of things I need. I could use some food though."

Heart pitied this pony but knew that no matter how much they fed him he would never improve. "We will help you but not for free."

The pony's face saddened. "I don't have any bits. If I did I would buy it myself."

"I don't want your money. I want your commitment."

The stallion looked up. "Huh?"

Heart wanted more than to help this pony. He wanted to make the pony happy again. "I can smell the alcohol on your breath. I can tell you don't have a home. You are in a hole that you can't escape aren't you?"

The stallion looked at the ground. "I try but I can never seem to get back on my hooves."

"Let us change that. Promise that you will try and we will feed you."

The stallion felt uncomfortable but he was hungry. "I promise."

Heart led him inside and fed him. Heart asked him questions about his life. It turns out the this stallion was a writer before now. His name was Lead Road. His books began to flop and then he started drinking out of depression. He lost his home and no pony wanted to publish his stories so he had no money. He tried to get work but no pony wanted to hire him so he couldn't get any money. He now sleeps in a filthy alley.

Heart had a plan to make sure this pony got better. "We will do better than feed you. We will build you a home. We take care of your every need. In return you will help us. You will write for us. Can you do that?"

The stallion heard Heart but couldn't believe what he said. "What do you mean you will build me a home?"

"I mean exactly that. These kids fixed this building up. They could easily build another next to this one. All it take is for you to try. I want you to quit drinking and get back to writing. You do that and you will have our full support."

The stallion couldn't pass on this deal. "I can. I can try."

Heart was glad to hear it. The stallion stayed in the HQ while the Lanterns built a shack besides it. It only took a week to build the entire thing. The stallion was awe struck. It wasn't much but he no longer had to sleep in the cold. He had a home again. His first day staying in the home Heart asked him to write them a story.

Lead Road agreed. He wrote a short story for the Lanterns entertainment. He read it to them and they all enjoyed it. They thanked and praised him for the story and asked for him to write another. He looked at them confused. "How can you all do this?"

Petal didn't understand. "What are you talking about? We liked your story so we thanked you."

Road didn't mean the praise. "I'm talking about being this nice to me. You have known me for a short while and you have done so much for me. I no longer have to dig through garbage cans to live. I don't get soaked when it rains. The only reason that I am not fighting another pony for a bottle of booze right now is because of you kids."

Petal looked proud. "We do it because that is what is right. Our number one guideline is to help ponies in whatever way we can." Petal looked at her leg that Heart had healed. "I use to think that this world was about looking after yourself. That you are alone and no pony will help you. Heart changed that. He fixed me when I was broken. I saw then that this world doesn't have to be that way. WE can make it better by showing others what it means to be a pony. Being a pony is about each other. It is about how you treat others. As long as we look after each other nothing can stand in our way. So we shine as Lanterns so that all other ponies can see."

Heart stood in the corner smiling. He was proud that he made such a big difference in this fillies life. Lead looked as if he was thinking. "I see. Excuse me. I have something I need to do." Lead left.

The next day he came back with paper in hoof. He gathered the Lanterns together. "I have something here for you. I worked on it all yesterday and I think I finally got it right. This is something that I believe describes this program." Road cleared his throat. "Shine bright so all can see. If there is no light than even the best off ponies can not find their way. A pony needs to be there to hold the light so that the ponies lost in the dark may find their way back to salvation. Be that light when no others are willing. Be the hope when all is lost. Be a beacon." He looked up to see their reaction.

The ponies nodded and complimented Road on the spot on description. Petal made a comment that caught Heart's attention. "I think that should be our motto." Heard thought about and agreed.

After a little discussing the group decided that it would be a little much to say all of that every time so they made a short version. "Shine bright so all can see." Heart liked the motto and Road's work Heart talked to Road about making a pledge for the group.

The next day Heart explained that they would have the pledge. Heart read aloud so that the group could say it with him. "I Heart's Vision pledge the following." The orphans and Lead Road copied Heart. Heart continued. "I see the dark of the world. I see that it needs light. I need to be that light. I shall be that light. I will guide the lost ponies of the world by example. I will care for my fellow pony and help them in their time of need. I shall shine so that all will know how they should act. I shall strive to be a beacon for ponies to follow. I will be a Lantern."

The entire group was happy. The program seemed more official now. Heart was making great progress with these kids and loved seeing that he would make a difference after all these years.


	9. The darkness

Chapter 8: The darkness.

Heart continued to visit the library in Canterlot and learn various spells that no other library had. He found very interesting spells but his focus was his Lantern program. The program had grown to forty active members and a couple hundred supporters who donated regularly to it. They had many grown ponies who were previously homeless become active members. The younger ponies led the adults by example and kindness. With all the members planning and holding events became time consuming. Heart couldn't put that much time into the program so he now let some of the more committed members organize events. He let Sun Petal, Lightning Hoof, and Lead Road take his place when he couldn't personally take care of preparations.

Lightning Hoof had made developed into a loyal and dedicated member of the program. At first he had resisted Heart's help but from Petal's example he now trusted Heart completely. The day was coming to an end and the Lanterns had just wrapped up learning and practicing skills which they did three times a week. The mare in charge of the orphanage waited for Heart outside of the Lantern head quarters.

Heart stepped outside and was immediately confronted by the mare. "Heart's Vision I need to speak with you."

Heart stopped to talk with the mare. He greeted her with a smile. "What about?"

"The children. I am worried about them. They spend less and less time at the orphanage."

Heart was aware of this. "Yes that is true but I don't see the problem with that. What is the harm in them coming here everyday and having fun while bettering themselves?"

"I love that they are happy but if they don't come to the orphanage then they might miss their chance to be adopted."

Heart thought about it. Most of the kids are in their early teens and Heart knew they had little chance for adoption. "I don't think they should wait around hoping that life will change. I am teaching them to take life into their own hooves. I am giving them the skills to be the greater ponies of the world."

"They need family. They would be happier if they had it. Tell them to come back."

Heart's blood began to boil. He thought of his family. He thought about how his family had abandoned him or tortured him. He would not let this mare hold them back. "NO! I will not lie to them. They won't get adopted at this age. They need to learn how to live. I plan to teach them. Who are you to stand in the way of their lives? I won't let you ruin their chances at happiness."

"It is not your call to make. I am going to talk to them and bring them back."

Lightning Hoof walked out from the building. "I don't think so. I won't go back to waiting. Heart has given us more than any pony ever has. I won't let you deprive me of this." Lightning got in the mare's face. He was bigger than her and looked down on her. "You can walk away or I can pay your hospital bill. Your choice."

The mare held fear in her eyes. She back up then turned and walked away. Lightning faced Heart. "Thank you, for everything."

Heart was proud that the young stallion was committed. "I have only shown you what you are capable of. Thank yourself. You made the decision to change not me."

The next day Heart brought Scootaloo the Lantern HQ. The place now had multiple building now. It had a the main building where they housed meetings and small events. A dorm where the ponies slept. A cafeteria where members ate and talked. Lead Road's house was now where Heart, Petal, Road, and Lightning met to discuss plans for the Lanterns.

Heart explained how they had built most of the building and fixed up the original. Scootaloo thought it was pretty cool. Heart brought her to meet the orphans who now slept in the dorm. They where in the main building enjoying each others company. "Lanterns say hi to my partner, Scootaloo."

The lanterns greeted Scootaloo. She greeted them back.

Heart explained how they had no parents and stayed here. It saddened Scootaloo to know that these fillies and colts didn't have parents to look after them. "I am sorry that you all don't have homes."

Petal giggled. "Don't feel sorry. We do have a home. Heart has given us a home. We are a family. That is what this is, a family. I am for once in my life not alone. I know Heart will always care for me." She flexed her leg. "Did you know he healed my leg?"

Scootaloo had not been told about this. "Oh really? Did you fall and break it somehow?"

Petal shook her head. "No he didn't mend the bones. He completely remade my leg. It was cut off in an accident."

Scootaloo looked at Heart. He always managed to amaze her. "When did this happen?"

Heart shrugged. "A few months ago. I didn't bother telling you because I didn't think anything of it."

Scootaloo smacked him in the back of the head. "You are such a numb skull. Tell me about these things." Scootaloo then kissed his cheek. "But a fantastic numb skull who I love."

Lightning Hoof laugh at the back of the group. "I see who wears the pants in this relationship."

Heart rubbed the back of his head with his hoof. "Ha ha. Very funny Lightning. Shouldn't you be doing something? Aren't you suppose to be calculating our budget today?"

Lightning rolled is eyes. "Yeah, yeah I know. I will get right on that after I finish holding my sides."

Heart knew that the young stallion was just having fun. "Well I wanted to tell all of you that if you need anything that you can come to Scootaloo. You already know that you can come to me for anything." Heart turned to Scootaloo. "Hey Scoot I have to go do some things in town. Do you want to stay here or will I meet you back at the castle?"

Before Scootaloo could answer the kids began to beg her to stay. "Calm down. I will stay for a while." Scootaloo turned to Heart. "I will meet you at home Heart. I need to pick some stuff up from the store or I would just wait for you here."

Heart left Scootaloo. Scootaloo stayed for as long as she could before leaving. She wanted to buy some supplies so that she could go pranking with Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. The sun was setting and the store was closing soon. Scootaloo was right around the corner from the store. She was passing an alley as she heard a voice.

"What is a pretty thing like you doing out late?"

Scootaloo turned to face the voice. It came from the alley. It was dark and she couldn't see very well but she saw a pony standing a few feet from her. It had to be a mare from the voice. "What?"

The mare stepped forward. She was a unicorn. She had a dark coat with a bright pink mane. Her pupils were dilated and she was twitchy. Her horn was lit up but Scootaloo couldn't see anything floating nearby. "It is dangerous out here. You could get hurt."

Scootaloo was creeped out from the mare. "Back off. I don't want any trouble."

The mare cackled. "Then hoof over all your bits and you won't have any."

"Hell no!"

"I warned you." The mare revealed the blade she had hid behind her. She charged Scootaloo. Scootaloo hit the mare but the blade sunk into the pegasus' side.

"AHH!" Scootaloo fell over. She felt the mare snatch her coin purse then heard her run away. Scootaloo looked around. She didn't see any pony around. "Help! Some pony help me! I'm hurt! Help!" Scootaloo looked at her side. The blade was left there. Blood tricked out of the wound. Scootaloo used her wings to pick herself up and began to limp to the store.

Heart waited in their room at Twilight's castle. He checked the time. It was dark out now and he wondered where Scootaloo was. A letter teleported in front of Heart. "Heart's Vision come to the Ponyville hospital now. Scootaloo has been hurt." The letter wasn't from any pony he knew. Heart teleported to the hospital. When he arrived he performed a detection spell and found Scootaloo. He didn't ask any pony he ran to the room she was in. The pony behind the counter yelled at him to stop but he didn't listen.

He burst into Scootaloo's room. A doctor stood over her. She was unconscious. The doctor turned to Heart. "Who are you? It isn't visiting hours. You need to leave." The doctor tried to block Heart's path.

Heart didn't care about anything but Scootaloo. "MOVE OUT OF MY WAY!" The doctor didn't act fast enough. Heart used his magic to fling the pony across the room. Heart heard a grunt as the doctor made contact with the wall. Heart looked Scootaloo over. He could see the damage and healed her immediately. He then tapped her so she would wake up.

Scootaloo's eyes fluttered open. "Hey sweetie. Where am I?"

Heart let out his breath he had been holding. "You are in the hospital. I have healed you. What happened?"

She tried to remember. It came back to her. "Oh yeah. I was stabbed by some crazy bitch while on the way to the store. She had a dark coat and a REALLY bright pink mane." Scootaloo looked at her bandaged side. "I can remove these right?" Heart nodded. The pegasus removed it and looked where she had been stabbed. There was no mark but it felt weird to Scootaloo. "I got a good hit in before she got me so she is going to have a bruise for a while and I don't even have a mark. Ha!"

Heart was glad she was fine. He turned to check on the doctor who had stood up and was now walking over to Heart. "I'm sorry doc but I know healing magic and I needed to see my Scoot. She everything to me."

The doctor looked a little dazed. "Yeah I got that now. Next time I won't stand in your way. Hey wait. You are that colt. The one who had that pipe through your gut. I could never forget the pattern on your coat."

Heart nodded. "Yes I was here once for that. It wasn't pleasant. That was a difficult time in my life." Heart looked to Scootaloo. "It was all worth it because of you."

Heart and Scootaloo left the hospital after signing some papers. There was a bill but Twilight would take care of it. The next day Heart called a meeting for the Lanterns. All active members convened in the main building.

Heart stood above all of them on a podium. "I have news every pony. My love Scootaloo was attacked yesterday. She is fine now but the pony responsibly is on the loose. She was described as having a dark coat and a bright pink mane. Scootaloo was attacked near the gag shop in town. If you see a pony that looks similar please inform me. That is all. Thank you." Heart stepped down and was met by Lightning and Petal.

Lightning spoke. "We will take care of this Heart. This pony has hurt one of us and that means she has her all of us. She will be brought to justice."

Heart nodded and thanked them for the support.

The next day Scootaloo left the castle to go get those gag gifts. She didn't care if some crazy pony had attacked her. She was going to have fun with her friends. When she went outside Lightning Hoof was waiting. "What are you doing here…?"

"Lightning Hoof. My name is Lightning Hoof and I am here to protect you."

"What?"

"You were hurt and I have no plans on letting that happen again so from now on you will have a guard. If not me than I will have another Lantern here for you."

"Did Heart set you up to this?"

"No ma'am. I am here on my own free will. Now go about your day as usual I will not get in your way."

"O…K." Scootaloo went along her way. She heard Lightning walking behind her. She was really uncomfortable. She made it to the store and bought her supplies. Lightning stayed out of the way. But didn't let Scootaloo out of his sight. Scootaloo was about to tell him to buzz off but before she could she bumped into a stallion walking down the side walk.

"Watch where you are going."

Scootaloo looked at the stallion. "Sorry I wasn't paying attention."

The stallion was rude to her. "I am tired of dumb mares with their head in the clouds. How about you just stay at your home and read magazines like a good girl."

Scootaloo wasn't going to take this from the stallion. "Why don't you stop being a sexiest asshole?"

"What did you say bitch?" The stallion pushed Scootaloo back. She fell into a sitting position.

Before Scootaloo could react Lightning popped out of nowhere and planted his hoof into the stallion's face. "You better back off buddy."

The stallion staggered back. "Who are you?"

"Don't mind who I am. Just turn and walk away."

"I am not going to take this shit from some punk." The stallion tried to hit Lightning.

Lightning blocked it and delivered another solid punch to the stallion's face. The stallion fell to the ground. Lightning kicked him once while he was down so that he got the message. "I will let you up now but if you do anything beside go the other direction I will make sure that what ever piece of shit place you go to won't recognize you."

The stallion understood and shook his head while he stood up. He listened this time and went on his way. Scootaloo watched the whole thing. She was glad that Lightning was here now. "Thank you Lightning."

Lightning turned with a smile. "Don't worry about it. You are family and I look after my family."

The Lanterns became regular guards for Scootaloo. When she went out she always had a pony guarding her. Twilight didn't have guards for her castle. Heart talked to the Lanterns and the ones capable were hired to guard the castle. Twilight received guards as well. She wasn't into it at first but they grew on her. It came to a point where Heart's family and his possessions were under constant protection from the Lanterns.

One day Petal called a meeting of the Lanterns. Heart arrived at the HQ last. He was told a wrong time to arrive. Petal did this on purpose for she had a present for him. Heart walked in. He felt bad because he thought he was late. He was always early so he felt bad about not being punctual. He made his way to the front of the crowd with Petal and Lightning.

Petal and Lightning went to the back room and brought back a pony tied up, blindfolded and gagged. Petal spoke. "Lanterns and Heart may I present you with our enemy. This is the mare who hurt Scootaloo, our family." Petal removed the blindfold and gag.

The mare yelled. "What the fuck is this! Let me go you crazy bastards!"

Heart looked her in the eyes. "Did you stab a orange pegasus mare a few days ago?"

The mare struggled. "I didn't do shit!"

Heart looked at her core. It was sporadic. Heart couldn't judge her on that. She was tied up. Any pony would freak out in this situation. "I can't trust you BUT I can trust your memory." Heart touched his horn to her head. He forced his way into her mind and began to search her memories. He saw what kind of mare she was. She was an addict. To get bits she mugged unsuspecting ponies. When she couldn't find any weak ones she would whore herself out to whichever stallion would pay. He found the memory he wanted. She was high but she was the one who hurt Scootaloo. Heart backed out of her mind.

"What the hell did you just do?!"

Heart faced his Lanterns. "This is the pony who hurt Scootaloo. She is scum. She is a blight on the world. She is the evil that damages and ruins the lives of the good ponies. She is unworthy. It is our duty to help every pony. That is our mission as Lanterns to save the good ponies of the world. But as long as this ponies is around she will plague us. This is why this pony must die."

"What?! Let me go you psychos!"

The Lanterns looked unsure. Petal spoke up. "It must be done. If we let her live she will only hurt more ponies. She might hurt our family again."

Lightning pulled something out from under his wing. "Heart. Here is the blade that hurt Scootaloo. Let her punishment copy her crime."

Heart levitated the blade away from Lightning. He looked at it. This was the blade that hurt his love. The blade that brought him pain and worry. He looked to the mare. Her eyes contained no more fight. She was paralyzed by fear. "You will pay for you crime in blood." Heart moved the blade close to her throat. In a quick movement he slide it across.

The pony bled. Blood rained from her throat. She gurgled trying to speak. Heart watched as she was drained of life. He did not feel regret. He was glad that the mare was gone from this world. She lay on the floor as Heart smiled.

Heart looked to his followers. "This world is full of beauty and wonder but is held back by ponies like this. This world needs heroes to free the good ponies from the evil. You all have experience the loss that evil brings. It may have come to you as a pony or an event that brought great change to your life. At some point we all need a pony to show us the way. We need a light to guide us back to our true selves. WE will be the light! WE will bring the light to the world! WE shall do it by purging the darkness that dwells around us! Are you with me?!"

Petal cheered her leader as did Lightning. A few ponies in the group began to cheer. More joined in. slowly the entire group chanted. "Purge the darkness! Purge the darkness! Purge the darkness!"

**A/N: Even if you trust someone they can get carried away. Just because someone is a good person doesn't mean that they will always do the right thing. Sometimes people do bad things because they think it is the right thing. Sometimes one must stop looking at the whole and put what they are doing out of context. It can sometimes help put some perspective on the situation. Sometimes others need to step up and say something and stop going along with they crowd. Everyone has decisions. We can't just put it down as "I was just doing as I was told." Because when it comes down to it if you were told to do horrible things and you did them than you are not only as bad as the person who ordered you. You are even worse because you followed blindly. Everyone have a pleasant day.**


	10. All in the wording

Chapter 9: All in the wording.

Heart's Vision walked through the castle halls. He had grown use to it's magical beauty. He opened a door to a big rotunda. It was mostly empty. Spell books were the only thing inside besides the pony sitting and waiting for Heart. Twilight Sparkle stood up and addressed Heart. "Are you ready to practice Heart?"

"As always Twilight."

"Show me what you got then."

Heart closed his eyes to focus. He preformed the spell. He felt a change in his body. He opened his eyes and flipped his body around. The spell took hold and he floated to the ceiling. He stood upside down on the ceiling. "Ha! I did it. I can't think of a time I would use this but I did it."

Twilight clapped. "Good job Heart. I know it doesn't have many practical uses but it was useful when I went to the crystal empire."

Heart deactivated the spell and dropped to the ground. "I may never use it but it is better to know it just in case. How about you try your spell?"

Twilight let out a huff. "This is the fifth time I have tried it today. I can almost do it. Maybe fifth times the charm." Twilight concentrated on the center of the room. A sphere small sphere formed. It slowly began to spin. Twilight was cringing trying her best. The sphere spun faster and faster. A few loose pages began to float around the room. A bead a sweat ran down Twilight's face. Suddenly everything stopped. The sphere vanished and the pages fell to the floor. Twilight breathed heavily. "Darn it. I can't manage to finish it off."

An idea came to Heart's mind. "Stand still Twilight."

"What? Why?"

"Just trust me."

"Ok…"

Heart concentrated. He had wanted to try this for a while. Heart shot magic into Twilight. It didn't hurt but Twilight let out a yelp from surprise. It was an odd feeling but it was one she had felt before. She couldn't figure out when she had felt this before. She had no idea what Heart was doing but she doubted that he would do anything malicious. Heart finished his spell. He stumbled and nearly fell over. "Try it now."

Twilight did as he said and began to perform the spell once more. As before the sphere formed. Seconds past and it got to the point where she failed last time but this time when it disappeared a small caterpillar was in the center of the room. "I did it. I created life. But how?"

Heart was sitting on his haunches. "I tested a spell I have been cooking up since I heard about Tirek. I gave you a large portion of my power."

It came to Twilight. She felt the same when Celestia, Luna, and Cadence gave their powers to her. "Why did you think you could do this?"

"Since I can manipulate pony's core I thought that maybe I could do more. Now I know I can. Thank you for helping me grow once again Twilight. I need to have that back though." Heart sucked his power out of Twilight.

Twilight shrugged of the feeling. "Heart that was a lot of power. I have felt the power of three other alicorns inside me. I know how power feels. You must have the power of an alicorn in you."

"That is a little bit of an overexaceration Twilight. I am only one unicorn."

"No it isn't. I know it doesn't make since but it is true. You are much more powerful than you think or should be."

Heart wanted to check on the progress of the Lanterns and stop this useless conversation. "I have to go check on the Lantern program. I'll be back for lunch." Heart teleported before Twilight could say anything.

"That stallion has been acting weird lately. I am going to talk to Scootaloo about it." Twilight went in search of Scootaloo. She walked into Heart and Scootaloo's room. Scootaloo was laying in the bed. As soon as she realized the opened she swept something under the pillow. Twilight didn't see what it was but saw the motion. "What was that?"

Scootaloo tried to look innocent. "What was what?"

"I saw that." Twilight used her magic to lift the pillow and take the object.

Scootaloo reached in vain to grab it. "No, don't!"

Twilight saw it was a book. She looked it over. She knew what type of book this was. It was a cheap little drama. Filled with plot twists to keep you interested. It wasn't the finest reading material but could keep most mares entertained for a day. "You are reading this?"

"Don't tell Heart. He will never let me live it down."

"Don't worry I won't tell him. I came here to ask you about him. Has he been acting different to you lately?"

Scootaloo thought about it. "He has been busy but other than that I don't think so."

Twilight wasn't dropping it. "Are you sure? You haven't noticed. He is usually light hearted and makes jokes and plays around. Lately he has been so serious and focused."

Scootaloo hadn't noticed it before but did now. He still seemed happy when he was around her but he paid less attention. Like his mind was in a different place. "I guess he has. He always seems to be thinking when I am around him."

"I am going to ask him about it. He might not open up to me so I would appreciate it if you would ask." Twilight was about to walk away before she remembered something that happened a while back that she never told Scootaloo. "Hey Scootaloo. You can tell Heart about that book. He will accept you for who you are."

"I know he cares about me but I would rather not have him bug me about it."

"Do you know how much he cares about you? One night I had king Chaotic and queen Luna over for dinner. Heart didn't mean to say it but he let it slip that he would gladly die for you to be happy. He seemed serious when he said it. It didn't seem like it would be a hard choice for him either. If he cares that much I don't think he will care about a book." Twilight left Scootaloo to read.

Heart came back for lunch with Scootaloo and Twilight. Twilight began questioning Heart as they ate. "Heart what is happening with you lately? You have been acting strange. Both Scootaloo and I agree."

Heart swallowed his food. "Nothing is happening. I just have been a little preoccupied with the Lantern program."

"What is going on there that is taking so much time?"

Heart couldn't tell the whole truth. "It is great. We now have forty seven active members. With so many members it is difficult to organize events. It would be easy but I also need to organize funding, supplies, recruitment, and other small things. I have begun to rely on the early members to help out. They are proving to be reliable so I will be less busy. I can go back to focusing on my studies. You will have your old Heart back soon."

Twilight wanted to believe Heart and didn't press further. "Ok as long as it happens soon."

The three ate in peace with the subject dealt with. Heart and Scootaloo went back to their room. Scootaloo wanted to speak with Heart. She didn't know how to start so she began with recent events. "Have you heard any news about that mare that attacked me?"

Heart tensed. He debated whether to lie or not. He wouldn't lie but he would not fill in the blanks either. "I have heard nothing from the authorities."

"I guess there is nothing I can do. I am fine so I guess it is ok if she is free."

Heart held hate for that pony for hurting his family. His emotions got the better of him. "No! She was a worthless pony. Pain is what she deserved."

Scootaloo looked at Heart. She caught his words. "Was?"

Heart hated it. This was the another time where his tongue had slipped. Heart didn't like to lie to Scootaloo and didn't think she would believe him. "She is gone now."

"What did you do Heart?"

"I didn't do much. She got what she deserved."

"What did you do?" Scootaloo used a less favorable tone.

Heart put up a sound barrier. "I killed her."

Scootaloo almost couldn't believe it. "Again? You did it again!"

Heart raised his voice in response. "Hey! She was scum, unfit to live among decent ponies. I did the world a favor."

"Heart this is wrong! You can't go around killing ponies because they hurt me."

Heart was getting angered. "I am not some criminal. I am ridding the world of parasites. I don't go around killing random ponies. Every pony I have punished has hurt others for no reason beside hate or their own gain. I do it because I love you and they should pay for hurting you."

"Let them be punished by the law. Let them be pay for their crimes in prison. You are not responsible for them."

Heart had a different opinion. "I am responsible. I have the power to stop them. I can do a better job. I am obligated to help."

Scootaloo knew he did it for her, not some feeling of responsibility. "Then why do you only hurt the ones that hurt me?"

Heart bit his lip. "Because, because I love you more than anything. The thought of them hurting you infuriates me."

"If you love me so much than stop it. I don't want to hear of you killing another pony. Ok?"

Heart nodded. "Ok, you won't hear of me killing another pony."

"Good. Now let's spend some time together."

"Let's." Heart and Scootaloo cuddled while talking. They didn't speak of anything important. They just joked around and talked of the future. Whether it be hypothetical or real.

Scootaloo asked Heart a question to throw him off. "What do you want to name our kids?"

Heart didn't see this coming. "Wha… What?" He had a dumbstruck look on his face.

Scootaloo laughed. "Oh that look. Oh I got you good." Scootaloo was messing around but lately she had been thinking about stuff like that. She didn't have school to distract her so she thought about where her future was going.

Heart let out a sigh. "Dear Celestia. I thought you were serious for a second. You are an ass."

Scootaloo hit him. "Don't call me an ass. I do have a serious question, hypothetical of course. Would you rather have a colt or filly?"

Heart thought about it. "Well I would prefer a colt but as long as it is our's I would be happy."

Scootaloo wondered what it would look like. "I could have a colt as long as it had your coat pattern. Oh he would be beautiful if he did."

Heart didn't like that idea. He remembered how much pain his coat pattern had brought him. He would never wish that on his child. "No." Scootaloo looked up at him. "I mean that I would rather our child have your looks. It would be wonderful to see you in our child."

"So when do you think this might happen?"

Heart caught on finally. "You were serious."

Scootaloo wiggled around. "Not fully. I'm not saying I'm ready for a kid but I would like you to think about it."

"Scoot I want you to live a little before we settle down."

"What do you want me to do? I don't know what to do. I can fly but I don't want to spend my life as a wonder bolt. I like my stunt shows but I don't want that to be the highlight of my life."

Heart didn't care what she did. He just wanted her to be happy. "I don't care. I want you to do what you love. No matter what it is I just want you to be happy."

Scootaloo knew what made her happy. "Then I just want to spend my life with you. I will tell you if I think of something else but for now let me just be happy with you."

Heart held her close. "What ever you want. I would give anything for you."

Scootaloo thought about what Twilight said. "Even your life?"

Heart didn't hesitate with his answer. "In a heart beat."

Scootaloo wasn't sure how she felt about that. "You better not go dieing on me or I'll kick your ass."

Heart smiled at the mare. "I love you Scoot."

"I love you too Heart." Scootaloo fell asleep holding onto Heart.

Heart waited a minute and slipped away. He still needed to check on the Lanterns one more time before he called it a day. He walked out of the room then teleported to the Lantern headquarters. Lightning Hoof recoiled as Heart teleported right in front of him. "Hello Heart. How are you?"

"I'm doing just fine. I came to check on the new projects progress."

"It is coming along nicely. We have found and captured four criminals and we are close to getting two more."

"What are the four you found charged with?"

"Three are wanted for assault and the fourth is accused of rape. These bastards are running from all over. Since there isn't a large police force here they are choosing to hide in Ponyville."

"Let me see them."

Lightning led Heart to the newly constructed building. It was far away from any of the programs buildings. It was small and dark on the inside. A single light hung inside. Four ponies lay on their knees with blindfold on. "Here they are."

Heart looked them over. "What is their crimes?" Lighting pointed out which ones had committed which crimes. Heart then searched each of their memories for the crime. The first one was a common criminal from Manehattan. He was guilty of his crime. Heart exited his mind. "This one dies." He had no emotion in his voice. He did not care what happened to this pony.

The pony heard Heart and spoke. "Hey man I didn't do nothing. Let me go."

Heart knew he was lieing. "I just searched your memories. I have seen what you have done. You will now pay for what you have done." Heart knew how pony's bodies worked. Heart focused and stopped the ponies beating heart. The pony's body went limp. Heart did the same for the next two after he confirmed their guilt.

The last one. "Don't kill me! I haven't done anything! I have been wrongly accused. Please you have to believe me."

Heart wouldn't trust his words. He searched through the last one's mind. The last one was accused of rape but Heart found nothing in his memories of the crime. This pony was innocent.

Heart turned to Lightning. "This pony has committed no crime." Heart wanted to talk to the pony about this. "You are wanted for rape. Why have you been accused of a crime you didn't commit?"

The pony couldn't see Heart and was afraid. "I met this mare. She seemed nice. Well we went back to her home and had sex. She demanded money and I said no. The next thing I know the cops are knocking on my door saying I raped her. I saw her and she looked like she had been beat up. And since I did have sex with her the kit pointed to me. I was going to go to prison because she was good at acting. I ran. I ran out of fear. I didn't want to pay for a crime I didn't commit."

Heart knew all of this already. He asked because he wanted to see if the stallion would lie to him. He didn't. Heart had an offer for him. "We are a group set on correcting this world. We only punish those who are guilty. You can never go back to living a normal life. You ran making yourself look guilty and they believe that you did it. I will give you one chance. You can join us. We will take care of you and one day find the mare who ruined your life. Will you join our cause?"

"My other option? Are you going to kill me if I say no?"

Heart had no intentions of punishing the innocent. "No. I will knock you out and set you free near town. You know nothing and pose no threat to us. It is your choice."

The stallion thought it over. If he went back to normal life it was only a matter of time before he would be caught and sent to prison. "I will join. I can't go back."

Heart was watched his core. "Are you planning to betray us?"

"No."

Heart saw that he was telling the truth. "Then welcome to the Lanterns."

**A/N: Heart did not lie. Scootaloo said she never wanted to hear about it again. And Heart plans to never tell her about killing again.**


	11. A step closer to a dream

**A/N: Oh I am so sorry guys. I know I am late and I am eternally sorry. At least I am not this weeks episode, You know, not there at all. I hope you ppl enjoy this chapter.~ sci-fi**

Chapter 10: A step closer to a dream.

Heart's Vision ate breakfast with Twilight Sparkle and Scootaloo. Two Lanterns guarded the door to the room. They did not wear the golden armor of royal guards. They wore orange armor to show that they were Lanterns as well as having a outline of a lantern on the piece of armor that covered their cutie mark.

Twilight had some news for Heart. "Heart I was speaking with Celestia and we decided that you should stay in the Canterlot castle."

Heart was taken by surprise and nearly choked on his food. "*cough * What? Where did this come from?"

"Don't die. We were just talking about how you wanted to be an adviser and we thought it best if you stay there. I would say you could be my adviser but I have a council of friends. It would nearly be pointless for you to be my adviser. Celestia hasn't had an adviser for years. She said she would need to know you before she could accept you. She wants you to go stay in Canterlot with her so she will get to know you. How does that sound?"

Heart hated being put on the spot like this. He wanted to say no because he had so much going on with the Lanterns but he couldn't pass on the chance to fullfill his dream. "Yes. I will go. Can Scootaloo come?"

"I'm sorry but she said no. She only wants you to come."

Heart turned to Scootaloo. "Is it ok with you Scoot?"

Scootaloo smiled. "I don't need you to hold my hoof my entire life. You go. I know how much you want this."

Heart was so glad he had these mares in his life. "Thank you. Both of you. You have always been there for me. You have supported me and given me the means to obtain my dream."

It was a few days before Heart needed to leave. He informed the Lanterns about this and apologized for leaving them. He would still make plans run the program but from a distance. They were not bothered by this. They understood that Heart was achieving what he had wanted since he was young. Heart trusted his circle to keep order and move the program forward.

He arrived in Canterlot and was greeted by Discord. "Hello Heart's Vision. How are you?"

Heart thought it odd for the draconequus. "Why are you meeting me?"

Discord laughed. "I thought you were suppose to be smart. I am Tia's partner. You really think that I won't be involved with her picking an adviser?"

Heart hadn't thought about it but saw what he meant. "Thank you for meeting me here. I promise I will be worth the time. I have devoted my life to this."

Discord heard about this pony. Twilight spoke highly of him. "I have heard you are quite gifted when it comes to magic. From what Dan has told me you were fun to spar as well. Maybe I should put you through the maze huh?"

Heart had heard about the Canterlot maze. It held all kind of magic. "If that is a challenge, I accept."

Discord smile wickedly, he snapped his fingers. Heart's luggage disappeared and Heart stood at the beginning of the maze. Discord could not be seen but Heart heard him clearly. "Here you go. Make it to the center of the maze, if you can."

Heart liked this draconequus. He walked forward. His right fore hoof was grabbed by a vine. He quickly shot it off. He put a shield around himself and walked forward. Seconds after his shield came up vines started to pound away at it. Their efforts were in vain. "Is that all you got god of chaos?"

"Oh getting cocky are we? Let me give you something better then."

A ursa major appeared in front of Heart. It let out a mighty roar. Heart simply shot a beam of magic at it. The ursa looked down about to attack but noticed something missing. The beam had left a wide hole in the ursa's chest. It fell over lifeless. "You can do better than that!"

"Fine! You want a challenge than you will get it." Discord was angered.

Discord gave him something that many ponies feared. A dragon appeared on the path. It was jet black and had raging eyes. Heart did not fear it. The dragon looked at Heart. It opened it's jaw and a column of fire engulfed Heart's sphere. Discord saw this and hoped that he hadn't burnt the pony. The dragon stopped and looked for the ash pile.

A shock wave emitted from Heart position. The dragon was unprepared and was knocked onto it's back. Heart jumped on it's belly. He let a continues stream of magic flow from his horn. He cut the dragon open. It was still alive and about to swipe of it's belly but was stopped by the pain. Heart used his magic to pull the dragons intestines out. It roared in pain.

Heart jumped inside the dragon. It freaked out. It had no idea what to do. Fire erupted from the dragon's throat but it was not it's fire. Heart fried the dragon's inside. When the dragon drew no more breath Heart teleported out of his victim. He was covered in blood. "I killed it. You got anything else? Dragons are pretty rare here. There is other things you could send my way but how about we call it quiets? Or do you still want me to prove myself further?"

Discord appeared in front of him. "No I think you have the combat ability. Did you have to make a mess of yourself though?"

Heart looked himself over. "Yeah I could have been a little cleaner. How about we go to the castle so I can clean myself?"

"No need." With a snap of his claw Heart was clean. "How about we go say hi to the others?"

"As long as I don't have to go inside a dragon again I am good."

Discord teleported them to the throne room. Heart was now in a room with all of the rulers. "Heart's Vision, my friends. One of the craziest unicorns I know."

Celestia looked at Discord. "Craziest unicorns?"

Discord nodded. "Oh yeah it is a rare day when a unicorn taunts a god of chaos right before he dives horn deep in a dragon's stomach."

Celestia looked at Heart with an odd look. "What did you do?"

Heart avoided the subject. "Don't worry about it. I am here to prove myself to you. I hope in the future you will see that I am a loyal pony that is worthy of being your adviser."

Chaotic stood to the side shaking his head for a second before putting on a fake smile. "it is good to see you again Heart. so how do you plan on proving that you are worthy?" then Chaotic waited for an answer he was sure he would regret hearing.

Heart kneeled. "Give me any task and I shall complete it. I will prove my loyalty in any way you see fit."

Discord looked at his fellow rulers. "I have an idea. How about each of us give this stallion a test? To prove that this pony is worthy to each of us individually. If he proves worthy in those we can think of where to go from there. " Discord looked at Heart. "If he doesn't, than he will have wasted our time as well as his life." Heart was scared by Discord. Heart was intimidated by his power but at the fact that his words and opinion was a deciding factor for Heart. That a simple no could crush all of Heart's work.

Chaotic smiled at the idea. "Good idea Discord, we will each come up with task that will show each of us if he has the trait we desire. if he passes each of them he will be an adviser after proper training. if he fails he will go home to the Lanterns. do we all agree? and do you Heart take this offer?" Chaotic was eerily calm as he looked Heart in the eyes without showing emotion.

Heart was not afraid of any challenge they would give him and looked right back. "I said in any way you see fit didn't I? I have waited all my life for this chance and will take any challenge you give me."

Discord acted quickly. "Oh that is just great my dear Heart. How about you give us rulers some time to talk it over." Discord teleported Heart to his room. Discord turned to his fellow rulers. "I don't like that pony. I don't like the idea of him doing a few tasks then poof he is an adviser."

Celestia nodded. "Yes you do not see a pony's true colors with a few simple tasks. What do you propose?"

Discord smiled. "Nothing too harsh just we give him a few secret tests as well. Some things that we can control. Like leaving bits on the table when you know who is home. We can bait him into revealing his true colors."

Celestia liked the plan but wasn't sure why Discord was pressing the matter. "Why are you suggesting this? We usually let Chaotic come up with the mischievous plans."

Discord could sense magic and he shared a little bit of knowledge with the group. "That pony is different. I don't think I have ever felt a unicorn with that much power coursing through his body. There is something different about his magic. I can't tell what it is but there is something odd about it. He should not have that much magic in him. He has enough magic for an alicorn. There is no way he was born with that. We should take that in to account."

Celestia didn't understand. "There has been plenty of unicorns with great power. Why should teat him any different?"

"Because he is seeking power. The last pony who was unnaturally powerful that acted like this was Sombra. I don't think any of us want that to happen again." Discord had an Idea to try to strengthen his argument. "Luna, What does Heart dream of? What does he see in his sleep? Have you seen him having dreams about power or anything like that?"

Luna had remained silent while Discord and Celestia were talking. She didn't like sharing the dreams of other ponies. They were private and belonged to that individual. She would make an exception in this case. "Heart sees nothing as he sleeps."

This struck Discord as odd. "What do you mean? Every pony dreams."

"No Heart doesn't dream because I must destroy them. He is plagued with constant nightmares. I have never seen Heart have a happy dream. I actually feel sorry for him. I don't think there is another pony in Equestria who doesn't have dreams."

Discord suddenly felt bad about pressing the matter but wanted to know more. "What would he see if you let them through?"

Luna hated seeing sorrow in other pony's dreams. "It is horrible. It is different every time but the theme is the same. He can never seem to win. No matter how hard he tries. No matter what he does. It all doesn't matter. He will never succeed. He might get close. He could have his goal in his hooves but it will always crumble around him. He always feels it is his fault too. One time he was getting an antidote for Scootaloo. She had been poisoned and needed it. He managed to get so close but when he grabbed it, it shattered. Just by touching it he ruined everything. He is destined to fail from the start. If I didn't stop this he would see things like this every night."

Discord felt even worse. "That is sad but it doesn't change how I feel about him. Hey Chaotic what do you think of Heart?"

Chaotic frowned at being asked this. "I am not sure just yet but I don't think trusting him is a good idea. Discord is right when he says he is power hungry. and unlike me he only wants to learn to get stronger instead of learning for the fn of it or to protect his loved ones. he does want to protect Scootaloo, but he has no limits. he is a switch. he goes from blank to kill if he or her are threatened in the slightest. Discord saw how he handled the dragon. and i am just glad it was a fake one or he would be on trial for murder of a dragon at this moment. it wasn't defense. he wanted that dragon dead and was overly active on the matter. i am afraid that if he were an adviser that he would try and have us make a choice of killing before asking questions or taking a more peaceful path." Chaotic wasn't happy about what he said but it was true none the less.

Celestia felt the need to defend her student's recommendation. "We must not hold a grudge against a pony we do not know. Twilight has made it very clear that she cares about Heart and insists that we give him a chance. She must see something in this pony to go so much out of her way to help this young stallion. You said it yourself Discord. This pony holds great power inside him. He could prove to be a hero to Equestria. A force for good. If we just shun him than he will resent us and work against us rather than with us."

Discord understood where Celestia was coming from. "Yes Tia, I know we can't just automatically assume he is bad news. But we must see the risks. We can't just put the kingdom at risk because your student says he is to be trusted."

Celestia didn't like Discord's attitude. "I don't want to hear that from you. I took great risk when I decided to reform you. If I hadn't risked my kingdom then, than you would be no more than stone right now."

Discord's first thought was to be angered. He didn't like that she brought that up. "That… That is not the point. I have turned out to be of great value to this kingdom."

"And so may Heart."

Discord understood that he had just been baited and hooked. "I guess that this pony deserves a fair chance. I will not be too hard on him."

"Thank you."

Luna had seen enough of this argument. She interrupted before something else happened. "What kind of tasks should we give Heart?" Luna looked to Chaotic. "What do you think?"

Chaotic had already thought of the task. "My task will be to see how he deals with Cebby and Chrysalis. he will only pass if he can deal with them without anger or harmful intent. he fails if he attacks them. he passes if he realizes that things are not what they appear and that friends can be anywhere in any shape. what about you Luna?"

Luna was unsure of what she wanted to do. "I think I want to see what he will do if he doesn't get what he wants."

Celestia wanted to know what her sister meant. "What do you mean?"

Luna had not worked out the specific but she had a general idea. "Well let us see how he reacts if we deny him. When or if he passes all other test let us tell him no. See what he does. If he becomes violent than we know that he should not be here. Things do not go your way all the time."

Discord nodded. "I like that. That is a great idea Luna. We will save that one for last. I have a plan of my own. I will test his loyalty. If he is not loyal than he might betray us. I am thinking of a few ways to do that. I will tell you when I have it all worked out. Tia what do you want to test?"

Celestia put a hoof to her chin. "Well I would like to test his knowledge. It will have to be a series of tests though. Some can be simple paper tests. Others will have to be field tested. Some shall be magical knowledge others will be politics or international affairs. This is a necessary test because if he fails this than there is no point in him being an adviser. This will be essential knowledge for an adviser."

Discord was happy that they had agreed with him and Heart would not be given power just because he knew Twilight. "Looks like we have some plans to finalize. I wonder if this pony will fail? Either way it will be quite the show."

Heart sat in his room. He had finished unpacking his things and didn't know what to do. A letter teleported next to him. It had a strange wax seal on it. The seal had an image of a flame indented on it. Heart opened the letter. A small object fell out. It was a stamp to make wax seals. Heart read the letter silently.

'_Hey Heart. This is Sun Petal. One of the unicorns has learned how to teleport small objects. He can't teleport himself yet but he can send you letters from us. Well we made these seals so you know when the letter is from us. We made you a custom one so that you can send us letters and we will know. Nothing really to update you on besides the letters. I will let you know if anything changes. We miss you already. We all hope that you succeed. You of all ponies deserve to fulfill your dreams.'_

Heart looked at his seal maker. He smiled. It was a little heart. He has been gone less than a day and they made it easier for him to get letters. He knew that they could handle themselves.

Discord barged in through the door. It slammed against the wall. "Hey there Heart! How you doing?"

Heart jumped. "Ah shit! What the heck! Why did you scare me like that?"

"Oh I didn't mean to. I was just coming to check on my guest. I want to be a generous and kind host don't I? I mean honestly why should I have to teleport everywhere with my magic? I am not bound to it, well I am but my true loyalty lies with my friends. I love causing laughter." Discord lied about not meaning to scare Heart. He just wanted to have a little fun, as well as see how quick Heart's wit is.

Heart listened to what Discord and found something odd about his words. "Discord why did you just name all of the elements of harmony?"

"Oh my you are a smart one. I wanted to see if you would catch that. Just messing around. What do you want to do? There is nothing that needs to be done right now so how about we play a game? It will give us a chance to get to know each other."

Heart saw no harm in doing so. He wanted to learn more about the draconequus. "I would love to. What should we do?"

"Let's play a game that will help me get to know you. I will say something and you will say the first thing that comes to mind. Let's get started." Discord got a serious face. "Death."

Heart wasn't expecting this. He was hoping that Discord wanted to be friendly. "Pain."

"There is never a need for violence."

"Wrong."

Discord saw that coming. "Explain your answer my little pony."

Heart answered it like any normal question. "Well sometimes there is no other way. Some ponies don't know how to reason. They know no other ways than force. That is why we have guards and police officers. So that we can correct those unwilling to follow the rules of society."

Discord saw the reasoning. "Back to the game. Help."

"Give."

"Life."

"What you make of it."

"That is an interesting answer. Do you believe that?"

"Yes I do. Life can be painful or happy. It depends on what you make of it."

"Why do you think this?"

Heart had felt alone when he was young. He knew that unless you make things change they won't. "Because life is not a gift. You have to work for what you get."

Discord wanted to prove this pony wrong. "What about the rich? What about their children? They are born in to luxury. They do not have to work for it."

"They have to work. If they don't learn how to hang on to their money than they will lose it. When that happens they have to work even harder because they have to catch up to all the others around them or they will end up in miserable lives." Heart knew what Discord was doing and didn't appreciate it. "How about you stop being a dick."

Discord was a little shocked at the bold statement. "What did you say to me?"

"You heard me. I have done nothing to you. Stop treating me this way."

"I am not treating you in any way. I am just talking to you."

"You are a bad liar. Look I will never get anywhere if a king hates me. I don't have anything against you. Is it because I want to be Celestia's adviser? Why don't you want me here?"

"Your are just here because Twilight likes you. You want power. You seek it. You want to have it to feel good about yourself. You want to be top pony, that is why I don't like you."

Heart wondered where Discord got his information. "You are partially right. I do want power but it is not because I want to be top pony. I don't need to feel gratified by it either. Do you know why I committed myself to magic when I was young?"

"I don't know. Maybe it made you seem cool."

Heart laughed at that. "Oh, oh that was a good one. No. I devoted myself to magic because I wanted to help ponies. I understood that you needed power to help ponies. That was the best way I could gain power. I learned about advisors soon after. I decided that that was the best way to help. That way I could help hundreds of ponies at once. Where I can only help a few ponies a day with magic. That is why I want to become an adviser. I want to help as many ponies as I possibly can."

Discord wanted Heart's reasoning. "Ok if that is your goal than why is it your goal?"

Heart had not shared this with many ponies. "Well I want to help because I know what it feels like to be helpless."

"How where you helpless? I know you had a mother and brother for most of your life."

"Just because some pony is around doesn't mean that they will help you. Discord Have you ever felt alone around Celestia or your other friends?"

"No."

"Than you don't understand what it feels like. I know you value friendship. You wouldn't be here now if you didn't. Think about back when you didn't have any. Would you want to go back there?"

Heart struck a nerve on Discord. "No! I never want to go back."

Heart expected that response. "Ok now think about having no friends or powers. How would you feel? Would you try to change that?"

"Of course, that would be horrible."

"Well that is what I experienced. I had no pony and no power. The worse part was that I was surrounded by ponies but they just didn't care. I had nothing to live for. I was alone and it almost seemed like life taunted me. It took all of my strength to continue. There were days when I just wanted to give up. I didn't because I couldn't leave behind the ones I cared for. Even though they had either forgotten me or hated me. Luckily a miracle came to me. Well two actually. Scootaloo and Twilight. They led me from darkness. They saved me. Without them I know that I would have given up eventually. So you know what. If you want to hate me that is your choice. If you want to destroy my life's goal go ahead. I will always have my family. I want this but I don't need it. The only pony you are hurting are the ones that I would have helped. If you would deny this kingdom a pony to help it than that is your fault not mine."

Discord was responsible for this kingdom and it was a responsibility that he did not take lightly. "I am not doing anything wrong. I am protecting Equestria. I have seen many being seeking power and control."

Heart interrupted Discord. "Like your past self."

Discord pointed a talon at Heart. "Watch what you say pony. You are not in any situation to bring mistakes up. You already tread on thin ice. I have the power to deny you any position as well as serve any punishment that I see fit. You are nothing compared to me."

Heart did not flinch. He did not show the fear he contained. He may be afraid but he wouldn't stand for any being mistreating others. "You sound like your old self."

Discord was going to teach this pony a lesson before he realized that Heart was right.

Heart saw Discord's pause. "You are treating me as if I am beneath you. I may not have been around when you caused chaos across Equestria but I have read many history books and know of how you treated ponies. Others may not be willing to stand up to you because you have so much power but I am not others. I am Heart's Vision. I stand up for what I believe is right. I don't care if they are my enemy, ruler, or friend. If they are doing something wrong I will not stand idle. I will take action through words, or force. I am going to tell you why what you are doing is wrong. You are judging me and forming a grudge when you don't know me. I have done nothing to you. I have done nothing to those around you. I have helped. I have been there for Twilight. I have supported Scootaloo. I do my best to help everypony so how about you just give me a fucking CHANCE to prove myself."

Discord had heard the pony rant. Discord liked his fire. "You know what. You are right. I have not given you a fair chance. I will not go so hard on you anymore. I don't have to. The future tests will determine if you are worth it or not. Goodbye Heart." Discord walk out of the room.

Heart was left alone once more. _'This is some bullshit. I haven't spent my life working at this to get talked down to and doubted. Celestia and Luna have ruled this land for a long time. I know that they are wise but Discord and Chaotic. They have not been in power very long by comparison. Chaotic seems to be a great problem solver but I am not sure how good of a king he is. Discord, Discord shouldn't be here. He has proven himself unreliable and unstable. Maybe they will make the right call and make me an advisor. I will be able to help forge the future, for the better.'_

Heart had an idea to help prove himself to his rulers. Heart found some paper, quill, and ink. He began to write a letter. Once he was done he teleported the letter. Heart went to be afterwards. It had been a disappointing day and he wanted it to be over.


	12. Tests

**A/N: Ha! VV is now longer than HT. So far every story I have started beats the previous in length. This one has some help from DLB though so I thank him for this one being longer. This chapter is pretty long so I hope yall enjoy. Please reveiw~ sci-fi**

Chapter 11: Tests.

Heart's Vision sat in the room the rulers gave him to stay in while he was in Canterlot. He sat and did nothing. He didn't know what to do. _'If I was at home I would have plenty to do. I could be organizing the Lanterns or studying with Twilight. I could spend time with Scoot or any of the other ponies around Ponyville. But no. I sit here wait so that I can prove that I am worthy.'_

A pony knocked on the door to Heart's room. Heart used his magic to open the door.

It was one of the castle staff. "Heart's Vision. You have visitors. If you follow me I can lead you to them."

Heart stood up from his moping. "Where are they?"

"They are at the entrance waiting for you to-" The pony was cut off by Heart teleporting to them.

Sun Petal and Lead Road were waiting for Heart. Heart was happy to see them. "Hey guys. I see you got my letter."

Petal hugged Heart. "We missed you."

"I was only gone a day."

"I still missed you." Petal released Heart from the hug.

Heart smiled. He was glad that she missed him but part of him worried that she was connecting to him too much. "How you doing Lead?"

"Just fine. Petal and Lightning are doing an excellent job of keeping the program on track."

Heart motioned for them to follow him. "Glad to hear it. I didn't expect you two to come so quickly. Now that you're here I can tell you why I needed you. The rulers don't believe in me. They think I am power hungry and shouldn't be aloud to be an adviser. I want you two to help represent me. Don't lie but tell them your opinion of me. Tell them if you think I deserve this position or not."

Petal thought Heart deserved more than just an adviser. "You are a great pony Heart. You deserve your dream. I have seen how you are. You are a gift. I don't think there is another pony like you."

Heart didn't like being complemented so much. "Thank you Petal but maybe you should tone it down. I feel uncomfortable when you do that."

"Anything for you Heart."

Lead understood that Petal was just being energetic. Young ponies tend to get a little carried away. "So when are we going to represent you Heart?"

Heart opened two big doors into the throne room. "Right now."

The four rulers sat in their individual seat looking at Heart questionably. Lead Road became nervous. He was standing in front of the most powerful beings in Equestria. "I was not ready for this."

Heart patted him. "It had to be done this way. It makes sure that your opinions are not prepared. You will do fine. Just be honest." Heart looked to the rulers. "I wanted to help you to know me. I have invited two members of the Lantern program I started in Ponyville. They will help represent me. I have asked them to be honest. If they don't want me to be an adviser than they are free to voice that opinion. Is this ok with you?"

Celestia nodded. "This is unexpected but acceptable. What will you do while we ask them?"

"Oh I can't be here while you ask them. I don't want to pressure them into lieing so I will go read in the library. They can introduce themselves so see you soon." Heart teleported away.

Celestia looked at the filly with the tan coat. Celestia liked her split mane. "What is your name?"

Petal stood tall. "My name is Sun Petal. I am a Lantern and proud."

The other rulers seem content with letting Celestia ask the questions. "You say you are a Lantern. I know that is the program that Heart's Vision started in Ponyville. He has not told me what exactly they do though. What does it mean to be a Lantern?"

Petal lit up. She loved telling ponies about the Lanterns. "The Lanterns are a program that helps ponies become better. We take the disowned, unwanted, and forgotten ponies and turn them into a force of good. Our ranks are not limited to those, we accept any pony willing to change themselves for the better. We do pretty much anything to help the community. We have repaired damaged homes, feed hungry, build entire new building, even give the homeless the skills to become productive members of society. I love being part of this program."

Celestia knew that doing these things cost money. "It is great that you have helped but where does your money come from? It is not cheap to build a home."

Petal knew how it all worked. She was partly responsible for it. "Well the community donates to keep our operations running. We are growing as well. Ponies love what we are doing and show their support."

Celestia liked the idea but she wanted to know how this pony became involved. "How did you become a Lantern?"

"I was one of the first Lanterns. Heart came to the orphanage one day and asked us if we would like to change our lives."

"You accepted and became Lanterns."

"No. It wasn't that simple. All of us were reluctant. Lightning straight up disagreed. Ponies had come and offered us things like that before. They always fell short though. We all had hoped once that some pony would come by and make all our problems disappear. That we would have a mom and dad to make our lives normal. So we didn't trust Heart. Lightning wanted Heart gone so he issued a challenge to Heart." Petal looked at her leg. "At the time my leg was gone. I was in an accident and it had to be amputated. Lightning told Heart to heal it. I thought that it was impossible but Heart, Heart proved me wrong. He gave it back to me. I can never thank him enough. I am not sure how I would be able to live my life if it wasn't for him. After that we all joined and became Lanterns. Heart made us learn skills such as carpentry. Heart has taught us all something valuable. He taught us that life won't change unless you make it. He showed us that we are responsible for changing it for the better."

Celestia saw why Petal was so proud to be a Lantern. Heart was a hero to her. "Thank you Petal. It seems Heart has done some great deeds that we did not look into." Celestia looked at the grey unicorn. "What is your name?"

"I am Lead Road."

"How did you meet Heart? You are too old to be an orphan."

"I met Heart when I came to the Lanterns for help. I was homeless and hungry. I had heard that they were offering food so I searched and found them. Heart said that I couldn't have the food for free. I was worried at first because I didn't have any bits to pay but he didn't want money. He wanted me to change my life for the better. At first I just said yes because of the food but he gave me more. He and the Lanterns built me a house. They fed me and in return I wrote them stories. I found somewhere I belong. I found my home. Heart gave me that. He is a great pony that helps those around him. He deserves this. He has worked so hard to become an advisor. Give him a chance. He just wants to help."

Celestia wouldn't just accept Heart because a few ponies said to. "That may be true. We will see that. You have helped us. Your opinions and stories help us see Heart in a different light. Thank you both. If you would please leave my fellow rulers would like to discuss matters privately."

The two Lanterns left the room. Celestia turned to Discord. "What do you thing of this?"

Discord had thought about his opinion of Heart since Heart called him out. "Well I think that they are worth considering. They didn't seem to be lieing. The filly seems to look up to Heart so her opinion shouldn't carry as much weight. The unicorn. He seems to be level headed enough to take into account. I'm not saying to trust Heart but we know that he has helped ponies with no gain towards himself. That speaks well for him. He has done some good in Ponyville. Made it better than before. Maybe I should go see exactly what progress he has made. Ask some of the locals. What do you think Tia?"

Celestia put a hoof on her chin. "I like the filly. She seems kind. There is potential in her. Heart gifted her with a normal life. If he never existed than she would still be alone and sad. It has been a while since I have seen a unicorn study advanced healing magic that does not plan on having a career as a doctor. Most doctors can't even perform those levels of spells without draining themselves. He is indeed a gifted unicorn. I shall assess his skill during my test. I think that the fact that the filly looks up to him is a good thing. If he is honorable he will feel responsible for her. Dear sister, how do you feel on the matter?"

Luna had been quiet. She paid attention to both of her visitors. "Well last night I was looking for dreams involving Heart. To see some ponies unconscious opinions of him. Sun Petal does idolizes him. She had a strange dream about him though. Well it was a nightmare that I prevented but in the dream she was horrified at the thought of disappointing him. This is a strange thing to fear. Yes disappointing some pony is a bad feeling but this was something that was a tragedy to her. I believe that she has an unhealthy love for him. It is platonic but I think that this pony might take things too far if left unchecked. With that said I think that Heat was an improvement to her life as well as Lead Road's. They are both happier now that Heart stepped in. Heart has done good and it shows he does want to do good, not just receive power." Luna turned to Chaotic. "What do you think my love?"

Chaotic had a small smile as an idea formed but went straight faced when he was asked about Heart. "Its no lie he has made the lives of a few others much better. and I think the Lanterns are a great idea, and possibly spread to other cities. but I am still unsure about Heart's deeper feelings and actions. but seeing those two does make me feel better about him and his chances. but I will be back. I think I know the perfect time and chance to have him take my tests. so excuse me." Then Chaotic got up and started to leave before Luna spoke up. "Go easy on him and don't do anything that will get others hurt." Chaotic turned with a genuine smile. "I honestly hope it wont, but I will make sure that all is well in the end." Then he was out the door and gone to do what ever it was his plan involved.

Sun Petal waited outside the throne room door with Lead Road. "How do you think it went?"

Lead didn't really know. "I can't say for certain. They didn't react to anything we said. They are royalty. They have been taught to keep their composer. They could think we were complete liars or they could think we were genuine. What matters is that we were honest. We did what we were suppose to. We did our duty. We can be proud about that."

"Yeah we did what we could." The door to the throne room opened up.

Chaotic walked out. "You two are still here? Great. Will you stay right here 'til I get back?"

Petal didn't know why but didn't see a problem with the request. "Yeah we can stay here. We don't have any plans."

"Glad to here it. Be right back." Chaotic left the two ponies alone.

Petal looked at Lead. "What was that about?"

Lead shrugged. "I don't know."

Heart was in the library reading. He had small amounts of trouble finding books. He was use to a small library. Not the huge one in Canterlot. Some books contained spells he already knew but had some that he didn't. So he had to scan carefully through them to make sure he didn't miss them. It agitated him. He was glad whenever he found a book that was filled with spells that he hadn't learned, but that was rare. More commonly was finding books with different titles but had nothing new to offer him. He was having a unlucky day when a letter appeared next to him. It told him to go back to the throne room. That they were done speaking to the Lanterns and wanted Heart to return.

Heart put back the book he was reading. He walked there. He would have teleported but he was not sure if the rulers were talking or not. It would look bad for him to intrude on them. He was nearing the throne room when he heard a scream followed by a voice he recognized.

"Stop! Ahh, ahh! Get OFF!" It was Sun Petal's voice. Heart ran forward. He saw a Cerberus on top of Petal. Petal's face was covered by the creature's mouth. Heart grasped the creature with his magic and hovered it out of the reach of any pony. Heart looked down at Petal.

Heart was surprised to see that Petal was fine. She was smiling and drenched in slobber. "Petal?"

Petal giggled. "Finally. Gosh I thought I was going to drown."

"Why were you screaming?"

"Well Cebby here jumped me. I like the fur ball but I don't like being drooled on."

Chaotic walked up behind Heart. "Can you put him down now?"

Heart hadn't seen the king before now. "Oh yeah." Heart gently put the dog down. "Now what is going on?"

Chaotic rubbed Cebby. "This is Cebby. I was introducing him to your friends Heart. I was also seeing how you reacted to seeing a supposed attack. It was a test. You passed. You took control of the situation without hurting either side or jumping to conclusions. You did very well for being put on the spot."

"That was an interesting test. Risky but interesting. If I had been more deadly with saving Petal than Cebby might have not slobbered ever again."

Chaotic had thought of that. "I was here the entire time. I would have protected him. If no than he is a tuff boy. You would be surprised what he can take."

Petal threw a lob of drool onto Heart. It hit him in the neck. He wiped the spit off himself. "Oh you little sneak." Heart pounced on Petal. He held her down. "Hey Cebby you want to finish the job?"

Cebby replied by licking the filly in the face. Petal tried to escape but she couldn't get past Heart. "Oh please I-. I give, I am sor-."

Heart put his ear a little closer. "What was that. I couldn't make it out."

"I'm sorry!"

Heart let the pony free. With a little effort she escaped the Dog's tongues of doom. Petal stood up with even more drool on her. "Why? Why me? Why not Lead?"

Heart smiled. "Lead didn't lob spit on me."

Lead was too busy laughing to say anything.

Petal tried to shake off the spit but is was too sticky. "Can you please get this off me?"

Heart did his best to remove the saliva. He managed most of it. "There you are."

"I need a bath."

Lead had caught his breath. "Yeah or you will smell like dog breath the rest of the day."

Petal gave him a dark look. "Keep talking, I dare you."

Lead smiled. "Come on let's go back to the hotel. The sooner we get back the sooner you get clean." He walked away followed by Petal who waved to Heart as she left.

Heart was glad that they were his friends. Heart looked to Chaotic. "So that is one down. Three left. What is next? Tests I mean."

Chaotic believed the Celestia was ready for him. "Celestia wants to test your knowledge. She probably already has it set up, go see her."

"See you later." Heart walked to the throne room to see if Celestia was there.

Heart met with Celestia at the training grounds later that day after Celestia was done with royal duties. She wanted to see Heart's magic level. She started with some difficult spells Heart passed them with a breeze. Celestia escalated from there. She learned that Heart knew many advanced spells. Some that took months or even years for most unicorns to learn.

Celestia did some estimating in her head. With how many of the spells he knew she put together that he learned them faster than most. Twilight had told her he learned fast but she had not been too specific. "Heart. I see you have a wide variety of spells, but how long did it take you to learn them?"

Heart had been told by Twilight that he learned fast but he didn't know how much of a difference he had. "Twi said I was fast learner. I don't know how much faster though."

Celestia chose a base spell because every unicorn learns it. "Levitation?"

"I could move every book in the Library back in Ponyville at once within a week of being taught the spell."

"Impressive. It take most unicorns weeks to even manage a single object. I know you like to teleport. How long did it take you to learn that one?"

"I managed to learn it in less than a year of beginning my lessons with Twilight. It was rough but I could do it."

"Wait. You got that far into magic within a year?"

"Well It was less than a school year so something like six months. Twilight made me learn from the bottom up so I would have learned it faster but I had to master all the other spells she presented before I could have a crack at it. She had this book of like a hundred simple spells."

"A lot of unicorns NEVER learn that spell. You manage to not only learn that spell but a hundred before that within six months. That is extraordinary Heart. No wonder why Twilight wrote me about you. Anything else she didn't tell me?"

Heart hesitated but he didn't see any harm in telling it now. "Well while Twilight was teaching me I secretly altered spells. I was very careful though."

"Heart you are one of the most gifted unicorns I have ever heard of. You might even rival Star Swirl one day."

"That mean you're going to name a section of the library after me?"

"Well if you proved to be that exceptional and you earned it yes. That would take a long time."

"I don't know. I am already approaching mastery level spells. It might not be as long as you think if what you and Twilight say."

Celestia had seen enough of Heart's magic knowledge. She needed to know about his political knowledge. "Come with me Heart. I need to know if you know how government works. You can't be an adviser if you don't know how we work."

Celestia brought him inside and gave him a large paper test. "Start when you are ready. I will be over here reading over some of my paper work while you take your test."

Heart was confident. "Hey while you are giving out tests why don't you find a chalk board and write you name on it. I could bring you an apple if you like."

Celestia smirked. "I am glad you are warming up to me. Twilight said you were fun to be around once you stop being shy. Get the test. It is quite long."

"I see why Twilight loved you as a teacher. She loves traditional learning, tests included." Heart began on the test. _'This is easy enough. I have studied this enough to not be worried. Still hate long tests. Fucking boring.'_

Heart finished up the test and told Celestia. "Done. Now what?"

Celestia put the test away. "Well today is the day I have you to myself. My duties are being kept to a minimum so it is up to you. You have finished up my tests so you are free to spend your day how you please."

"Well if you don't have much to do than how about we do something together. If I pass all the tests than I will be spending a lot of time with you. I would like to know you. The real you. I only see you as a ruler of Equestria. I want to see you as the pony you are and a friend."

Celestia didn't have much to do and the other rulers were busy. "Why not. I want to get to know my student's student."

"Great so what do you want to do?"

"How about we just sit here and talk. I want to know you. The best way to do that is to talk to you. Over tea?"

Heart thought about it. "I can talk but no tea. Not a tea pony."

Celestia and Heart found a more comfortable place on a balcony over looking Canterlot and did just that. They talked about the different experiences in life. Heart had nothing on Celestia but she was wanted to know him o she listened. Part of her felt sorry for his early life. Heart tried to keep the talk about it to a minimum but Celestia wanted to know and pressed the matter. Heart told stories about the happy times with Scootaloo. Celestia asked a question that Heart didn't see coming. "If you care for Scootaloo so much than why don't you marry her?"

Heart looked over the city. "Well I do want to be with her forever but it doesn't seem right to do that while I am trying to become an adviser. I want to be in a stable place whenever I ask. I don't want it to go wrong. I want to be able to focus on her at the time. I don't want studying or something like this getting in the way. It is kind of funny. She has been throwing what ifs my way lately. She is hinting so hard but I just can't do it. I will make it up to her. That I promise. She is the most important thing to me. So if I don't get the position than I have something to look forward to."

Celestia saw the truth in Heart. "It is a wonderful thing to have ones to love. It can drive you in the right direction. It is only when you lose sight of them that you create evil." She looked slightly sad.

Heart knew why she was saying this. "We all make mistakes. Even the best beings do. It is only a failure if we don't learn from them. Would Nightmare Moon ever happen again?"

Celestia shook her head. "No. I would never let that happen again."

"Than it was not a failure and you shouldn't feel bad about it."

Heart's words made Celestia feel a little better. "You are wise for your age Heart."

Heart didn't smile at the compliment. He frowned slightly. "With pain comes wisdom." The two separated shortly after.

The next day Heart felt better than before. He had knocked two test out, leaving him half way done. He was confident that he passed that written test Celestia gave him. He wondered what Discord and Luna would throw his way.

He entered the throne room and saw Discord, Celestia, and Chaotic sitting in their thrones but no Luna. "Where is queen Luna?"

Chaotic responded. "She will be coming shortly to give you her test."

As Chaotic finished his sentence Luna walked into the throne room. "Hello every pony! How are we all today?" Luna passed by Heart. "Looking good Heart."

Heart blinked a few times. Wondering why Luna was acting so cheerful today. She was usually so much quieter.

Lund took her throne. "So Heart you want to be my sister's adviser? I want to test you for real. I can't have a lesser pony by her side. I am going to send you on a quest for your test. there is rumor of a lost artifact in a far away land. The land has been plagued by war and you must go there so that the inhabitants don't misuse it's power. What do you say?"

Heart narrowed his eyes. "I wouldn't mind doing this if Queen Luna requested it. I don't like imposters so how about you tell me who the fuck YOU are?"

Luna smiled. "Well at least he isn't completely stupid."

Discord wasn't happy. "It might have been easier to believe if you had tried. Not come up in here like you own the place. Luna has more respect than that."

Luna transformed to her true form. Chrysalis. "Well I got some of the guards to believe me. Also Dan, oops I mean Chaotic, you might want to watch some of your ponies they have wondering eyes."

Discord rolled his eyes. "And I am sure they were given no extra incentive to look your way."

"Well I may have done a little more swaying than necessary but that doesn't mean anything." Chrysalis looked to Heart. "That is a fetching little pattern you got going on. I do appreciate it. But how about you settle our earlier disagreement. How did you know I was not Luna?"

Heart was listening and watching how they reacted to the changeling and decided that she wasn't a threat. "Well I have not been around long enough to know her behavior all the time but I have seen her core and you do not share the same core."

"So this one can see magical cores. How interesting. You failed to mention this Chaotic."

Chaotic wasn't expecting Heart to figure it out so quickly. "Well it didn't seem important at the time."

Luna, the real Luna walked into the room. "Good job Heart. It took us much longer to find Chrysalis and we wouldn't have done it if it wasn't for Twilight. I am glad that if you do pass that a imposter wouldn't easily take my place."

Chrysalis moved out of Luna's seat. "So Heart how do you feel about my species? The changelings."

Heart had heard stories about the changelings, how they were monsters that lied and deceived ponies. "That would depend on the changeling. You personally have committed some crimes. I don't think locking up Cadence and Twilight are acceptable deeds. You have renounced these ways so you are acceptable."

"So you have no problem with the fact that we feed off love and can change to look like the ones you love?" To prove her point she changed into Scootaloo.

Heart felt a spear of hate strike through him. He kept his calm. "That is a power that one must learn to use carefully. Many of your subjects have paid the price for that misuse."

Chrysalis sneered. "What are you getting at. Are you another close minded pony that fears what he doesn't understand?"

"No. I understand your species. I just think you should be more careful who you toy with."

"Such a liar. You don't understand my kind."

Heart was not going to argue with a bug. He shot a beam at Chrysalis. As soon as it hit she turned back to her natural form.

She grunted trying to turn back. "What did you do! I can't transform."

Heart's eyes had changed color into their ring of fire. "You march in here knowing you deceive no pony. You turn into my love and think I will do nothing? You disrespect me and my knowledge. Your kind is not bad but any being who acts like you are parasites. I have locked your core for an hour. It will wear off but 'til that time you cannot transform. Have fun. I hope no pony holds spite for your kind."

Chaotic had enough of this. "Heart's Vision! What are you doing! This is a leader of a species. She deserves respect just like any other."

Heart realized that he might be jeopardizing his chances but he had his code. "No she doesn't. I give respect to those who deserve it. She has done a horrible job of representing her species. If she had acted will decently than I would respect her but she didn't. She treated me like a toy. I don't appreciate it."

Celestia stuck up for Heart. "He does have a point. I don't condone his actions but he has reasoning."

Chaotic wanted to defuse this possibly volatile situation. "Heart unlock Chrysalis' power."

Heart had a requirement. "I will if she apologizes."

Chrysalis didn't like this. "You will give me my powers back."

"Why? So that you can mock me?"

"I did not mock you. I was playing around."

"Just playing around. You know what bullies say when they are asked what they are doing to their victims? Just playing around. Well just playing around like that hurts feelings. You know what one of the number one things I hate is? Bullies. I don't sit silent. I stand. So you apologize and you get what you want. Show some humility."

Chaotic was about to say something when Chrysalis spoke up. "You know what. I am sorry. I toyed with your emotions. It was wrong. I can sense your pain. Please forgive me."

Heart unlocked her power. "Thank you. I forgive you. I know that you didn't mean to. I would love to learn more about your kind. I have only heard misguided horror stories about your kind. I have read a few books on your biology but I want to hear what you have to say."

Chrysalis looked at Heart's eyes. They were back to normal. "I would like to teach you our true selves. There is too many lies and horrible rumors about us."

Discord spoke up. "That would be good. An ambassador from the griffon kingdom is coming by."

Heart and Chrysalis left. They spent some time talking before Chrysalis had to leave. Afterwards Heart went back to see if Discord was ready to reveal his test. As he was walking back a griffon walk past him. Heart assumed it was the ambassador. A claw grabbed his shoulder. Heart turned and faced the griffon. "Huh?"

The griffon looked him over. "You are Heart's Vision correct?"

"Yeah?"

"I have a proposition for you." The griffon looked around making sure no pony was around. "I am prepared to offer you a position in my government. All you have to do is spy for us."

"What?"

"Think about it. These ponies will never accept you. Every one of their rulers hold great power. They won't accept a simple unicorn into their ranks. I can offer you more. A place of power. All you have to do is help us conquer these ponies. I don't want your decision now. I will give you time to think." The griffon walk away.

Heart was left there standing looking stupid. He shook himself out of it. He headed to the throne room. All the rulers were there. Heart got their attention. "I have some news for you all. I was just offered a job. From the griffon ambassador."

Luna smiled. "What did he offer? It would be great to strengthen our relationship with them."

Heart did not return the smile. "He wanted me to spy on you. He wants me to betray Equestria."

Discord burst out. "Come on! He just left! Can you at least pretend that you will fail a test. We just got done convincing him to ask that."

Heart was confused. "What? What do you mean?"

Discord rolled his eyes. "You really think that the ambassador would just stop you in the hall and offer something like that? That was a test Heart. You passed but come on. Nick and I have bets placed. You are making me lose."

Celestia looked at Discord. "Maybe you shouldn't risk bits on such foolery."

"Who said anything about bits? I don't care about bits. I bet in dares."

Celestia face hoofed. "I am going have to deal with this for a long time aren't I?"

"I am only thirty deep. I can come back."

Heart was laughing. Partly relieved because that was his final test and partly because of the look Celestia was giving Discord.

Discord looked at Heart. "Why are you laughing?"

Heart finished laughing. "I passed all the tests! Plus that look. That look is priceless."

Discord felt a little sorry for Heart. "Who said you passed all the tests?"

"Huh? I passed Chaotic's Cebby test. I passed Celestia's test. I revealed the changeling."

Discord butted in. "The test wasn't if you could reveal the changeling it was how you treated her."

Heart's stomach bottomed out. He looked at the floor. "So did I fail?"

"No. We must discuss it. You have not passed but you haven't necessarily failed either. We will decide by tomorrow. Until then go do what you want. You will have your answer soon."

Heart slowly walked out of the room. He ran into two little ponies. More like they smacked into him but they both fell on their behinds. Heart looked at them. He had not seen them before now but knew who they were. One was a boy and the other a girl. "Hello Illusion and Moon Love."

They little ones looked up at him. Moon love spoke. "Who are you?"

"I am Heart's Vision."

"Why do you look sad?"

Heart forgot to hide what he was feeling. "I messed up. I made a mistake that may have cost me a dream."

"How did you do that? Mommy protects our dreams."

"Not that kind of dream Moon. A goal. I wanted to help ponies. But I may have ruined that."

"Mommy helps ponies all the time. I want to be just like her when I get big."

Something seemingly possessed Heart. He didn't resist the urge. Something flashed besides Heart's head. It was his ball. The one he had as a kid. The one he gave to Scootaloo. "That is a noble goal. Can you promise me something? Will you keep it? Will you promise to help ponies when you get older?"

"Of course. I am going to make all the nightmares go away just like mommy does."

"Then you can have this. It doesn't look like much but it is very important to me. It was a gift from my father. Will you take care of it for me?" Heart levitated the ball to the filly.

"Where is your daddy now?"

"My dad is gone."

"Did he leave on a trip? My daddy goes on trips sometimes."

"Don't worry about it Moon. Will you take care of that ball?"

"Yeah."

"Than you can keep it." Heart walked away to go to his room. He had enough of this day.

Moon Love and Illusion returned to their original goal. They ran into the throne room and at their separate parents. Luna asked why they were here. They said they wanted to see them. Luna asked about the ball Moon had. "This is a gift from Heart. He said I could have it as long as I promised to help ponies. He had a neat coat momma. He had a little heart on his chest. It was pretty just like his coat but he was all sad. Can you make him happy momma?"

Heart woke up the next day to banging on his door. He opened it and a guard pony stood there. "The ruler wish to see you in the throne room."

Heart waved him off. "I will be there." Heart closed the door. Heart went to the bathroom. He looked a mess. He was going to comb his mane and brush his coat but stopped right after he picked up the comb and brush. _'Why does it matter how I look to be called a failure? I am going to get this over with. The sooner I go the sooner I can go home.'_

Heart teleported to the throne room. He was placed in the center of the room. All of he ruler faced him. Heart didn't look at them. He watched the carpet. "I am here." He let out a loud sigh.

Celestia spoke. "Do you know why we called you here Heart?"

Heart didn't look up. "Yes. I have failed." Heart looked at Discord. "I guess you were right. I did waste my life." Heart looked back at the ground. "I-I-I just wanted to help." A few tears fell from his face. "I will go pack my things." Heart started to turn to leave.

Discord couldn't take it. "Of for buck sake! We can all clearly see how he reacts to this. He passes. Heart stop. You didn't fail. You passed. You are going to be an advisor to Celestia."

Heart turned. "What?"

Celestia confirmed it. "Yes Heart we talked it over and this was to be your final test. We see how you react when you are denied. If you wanted power you might have become angered when we denied it. You didn't. You passed Heart. So be happy. You get your wish."

**A/N: Yay! Heart finally did it. All it took was murdering his brother, knowing Twilight, and years of effort. ~sci-fi **


	13. Celebrations

Chapter 12: Celebrations.

Heart's Vision lost all of his gloom. He hopped up and down in joy. "Yes! Finally! I finally did it!"

The rulers were happy for the stallion. They were unsure for a while if it was the right thing for them to do or not but Celestia believed in Twilight Sparkle and after speaking to Heart about his life decided that he wasn't just power hungry. Celestia spoke to calm the Stallion. "Heart calm down. I am glad for you. We all are."

Heart settled down. "I'm sorry it has been a long time coming. Thank you. Thank you all."

Celestia had preparations to make Heart's position official. "Heart I have things that need to be done. How about you go celebrate. I am sure that Twilight and Scootaloo want to share this moment with you."

"I will." Heart teleported to Ponyville.

Celestia addressed her fellow rulers. "In time he may become a great pony. I do not believe that we will regret this decision. I feel that he will play a pivotal role in Equestria's future."

Discord had come to like the pony. "He has great will. He is a little cocky some times but he stands up for what he thinks is right. A rare trait to have."

Luna nodded. "Yes but we must keep an eye on him. As you said Discord. there is something odd about him. We can't give him too much power. I fear that he has been changed by his trials. For better or worse is unknown."

Chaotic worried about this decision. "I just hope that role will be a good one and not one we come to regret. but for now, good for him. He's worked hard and deserves a chance at his dream."

Heart popped up in his room back at Twilight's castle. Scootaloo was reading on the bed. "Ahh!" Scootaloo jumped a clear foot off the bed. She realized it was Heart afterwards. "Dear Celestia Heart. Don't do that! What are you doing back anyway?"

Heart smiled. "Well I may have passed and I may be coming back to throw a wicked party to celebrate."

Scootaloo put her book away. "That is great Heart! I knew that you would do it."

"Well it seems you were right. We need to find Pinkie Pie. I couldn't think of a better pony to organize the celebration." Heart and Scootaloo found Twilight and told her the good news. Afterwards the three went in search of Pinkie. Heart sent letters to the Lanterns so that they could help set it up. The party was held at Twilight's castle. Every pony in Ponyville was invited.

It didn't take long for the castle to be full. Heart had a great time. He started performing light show with his magic. In the back of his mind he was planning for the future. There was something that he needed to do.

The next day he woke up in his room with Scootaloo wrapped around him. "Oh my head. I may have gotten a little carried away yesterday." He removed Scootaloo and tried to wake himself up.

He was greeted by Lightning Hoof. "I didn't think I would ever see you let lose like that. Actually I don't think I have seen you drink alcohol before now."

"Well I am remembering why I don't. My head is killing me. Is there something you need?"

"I wanted to ask if you planned on doing anything today. The Lanterns would like to see you. Nothing important, it would just be nice to see you."

"Well they will have to wait. I do have plans. There is something I have been meaning to do for a long time now. It shouldn't have to wait any longer. I may need your help though."

"What with?"

Heart told Lightning Hoof what to do. He nodded and left Heart to put the rest of the pieces together.

Scootaloo woke up hours to the room door swinging open. Heart walked in with a tray of food. She sat up. "I missed you bringing me food."

Heart acted offended. "So you didn't miss me?"

Scootaloo wasn't falling for it. "Nope. Just the perks."

"I guess I should take my perks elsewhere than."

Scootaloo stopped him. "Aw quit messing around and get over here with me."

Heart smiled. "That is what I thought." He put the tray in front of Scootaloo. She finished eating and Heart lead her to the cutie mark crusader's old club house.

"What are we doing here Heart?" The pair walked into the small building.

"I just wanted to re live some happy memories." Heart loved this place. "I was always happy with you. You were my safe place. I didn't need anything else. I didn't need anything but you. You changed my life Scoot."

Scootaloo leaned on him. "Getting all sappy on me. You would have found some other lucky filly."

"No. No I wouldn't have. I don't think a single pony means more to me than you. I may have found a substitute but no pony would live up to you. Heh. You use to look up to Rainbow Dash so much. While your eyes scanned the skies I would look to you and wonder how such a wonderful pony would ever care about me."

"Heart I will always love you. You should never doubt that."

Heart looked Scootaloo in the eyes. "I know but I haven't treated you how I should have."

"What are you talking about. You never treat me wrong."

"There is something that you earned a long time ago that I never gave you." Heart started to walk outside.

"What would that be?"

Scootaloo crossed the threshold to the outside. Heart was found looking up. Scootaloo did the same. There was three words spelled out in the clouds. "Marry me Scoot." Scootaloo looked down to Heart.

Heart looked at her with a warm smile. "What do you say Scoot?"

Scootaloo eyes watered up. She hugged Heart will all her might. "Of course!"

Heart didn't expect anything less. "I should have done this a long time ago."

"YEAH YOU SHOULD HAVE!"

Heart chuckled. "Yeah"

Heart brought her to town to pick a bracelet before she flew off and told everypony she knew.

It didn't take long for Heart to receive a visitor to comment on his new action. "So I heard you finally decided to give squirt what she wanted."

Heart looked up to see Rainbow Dash hovering above him. "Oh hey Rainbow. What you up to?"

Rainbow landed. "Nothing much. I just decided to come by and talk to you."

"Anything in particular?"

"I wanted to thank you. You make Scootaloo happy and that makes me happy. I wish you would have asked her sooner. She was going on about it for the longest time. She was getting tired of waiting, she was going to ask you."

Heart laughed. "Yeah that might have been awkward to tell the other."

"You did good Heart. I wasn't sure about you when you were young but I was wrong. You are something else. Congrats on the job by the way. Applejack might need to hire a new employee. I think you made her go soft."

"Thank you Dash. I do my best and Applejack will be fine. I am more concerned about my Lanterns."

"How is that going by the way?"

"Last I checked it was great. We seem to always have new recruits and we have plenty of funding."

"Yeah Lightning Hoof. I met him the other day. Fluttershy needed help putting together some animal adoption thing. Your Lanterns helped put it all together, very helpful. Lightning Hoof stood out. He was organizing the other ponies. He seems like a good leader. Tell him thank you for me. There was a stallion giving Fluttershy trouble, I was about to intervene when he jump down his throat. It was a show. The stallion thought he was all big and bad before Lightning shoved a hoof in his face. I haven't seen a pony move that fast before. His name is very fitting. It was like a blur. Well I need to do some stuff, see ya later." Rainbow flew away.

Heart was proud that Lightning stood up for Fluttershy. Heart changed his mind about the Lanterns. They would be fine on their own.

Heart had one more thing to do before he returned to the castle. He went to the Lanterns, he called a general meeting. It was rushed but the majority of the Lanterns showed up. The building was pact. He stood in front of fifty Lanterns. Beside him were Lightning Hoof, Sun Petal, and Lead Road. "Lanterns I call you here for a very special occasion. Today many of you will hold a new goal."

Heart turned to Petal. "Petal. You are young but are loyal. You follow our guidelines and spread our ways. You show other the path to follow. You are a shining example of a Lantern but even more, you are a beacon. You are more than just a Lantern. You are a inspiration to other. For that you earn the title of Beacon. You have proven yourself, now help other by guiding them."

Petal grinned from ear to ear. "Thank you Heart. I am honored by this. I will make you proud."

"You already have." Heart named Lightning and Lead Road as Beacons. He explained that they are leaders now. Heart ended the meeting and went in search of Scootaloo. He had some wedding planning to do.

**A/N: Ok so this chapter is really short. I am sorry about that but it is what is is. I realize that I am lete as well but it not my fault, I have school now and i don't get out til three. So my posting has moved to like four. Well the next chap will be longer. Everyone have a nice day. ~sci-fi**


	14. What a show

**A/N: This is a good chapter in my opinion. It could be better but I like it. I hope you guys do as well.~ sci-fi**

Chapter 13: What a show.

"We need to decide Heart!" Scootaloo gave Heart's Vision an annoyed look.

Heart ducked his head. "I'm sorry Scoot I just don't know what you want me to say. I don't really care what the wedding is like. I just want to be with you. I don't care..." Heart looked at the book laying in front of them. "What color the invitation cards are? Why the fuck does that matter? Which pony thought of this?"

"This is a dead end. I will pick it. Ok so what kind of cake do you want?"

"One with sugar?"

"I am going to hit you."

"Look I really don't know. I am not trying to be mean. You pick the cake. You pick the decorations. You pick what you want. I have already picked what I want. I picked you and that is all I care about."

Scootaloo wasn't that mad. She knew he was being truthful, not just buttering her up. "Ok, I will take care of this. You owe me. Not only are you not helping me pick you are making me deal with Rarity."

"I owe you. I am sorry that I can't help."

"I'm not worried about it. You are paying for anything I pick."

"What do you mean?"

"This is going to be a wedding to remember. I might not even were white. The Cakes are going to be able to afford a new shop after this. "

Heart shook his head. "Please don't go overboard with it. I don't want to be a buried in bills. I love you Scoot." Heart went to go take care of some preparations.

Scootaloo went to the Rarity's boutique. Rarity expected her to come and was waiting with a her designs out. "Darling I have some designs here waiting for you. I recommend this one." She pointed to a drawing.

Scootaloo shook her head and smiled. "No. I know what I want." Scootaloo went into detail of what she wanted.

Rarity cringed at her ideas. "Are, are you sure? This is very… different than most."

"Oh yeah. This is exactly what I want. Do me a favor and make it fire resistant."

"Why? What are you planning to do?"

Scootaloo grinned. "I just want to have some fun with it. I can only do this once so why not make it a day to remember?"

"Ok if you say so."

Scootaloo left. She had other plans to organize.

Heart waited a few days before bringing up the wedding again. "So what have you got planned?"

Scootaloo smiled. "I have a few thing lined up. I wanted ask you something. Is there any spell that you can put on the invitations?"

"That depends. I can put protection spells on them. If you want some kind of decoration I might be able to do something but I might not."

Scootaloo explained what she wanted and Heart agreed to do it. Heart asked again what she had planned. She told him what she wanted for certain and a few things she wasn't sure about.

Heart was surprised by her ideas. "This is going to surprise our guests Scoot. I like it. I like all of the ideas. I will have to work out a plan for the last one but I want it."

"I thought you would."

"I was curious if you would want a normal ceremony or not. I got my answer."

It was a lot of work but Scootaloo and Heart set up a the wedding. They held it in Ponyville. Celestia had offered for it to be held in Canterlot but Heart and Scootaloo wanted it to be in their home. The day had come and ponies turned in their invitations as told. The guests instantly noticed the churches new paint. The inside of the building had been painted in a unique design. Thick green lines converged at the front the room. It was mimicking Heart coat pattern.

The difference was that where his black heart would have been was a orange one with purple outline. It was a symbol to represent that there was only room in Heart's heart for Scootaloo. The last of the guests came into the building.

Heart watched and smiled. He knew what was about to happen. Every invitation melted. The puddle of paper slithered to the front. It formed a archway above Heart. It was not a plain archway. It was two sleek ponies standing on their hind legs holding hooves. Making sure the other didn't fall. A few ponies had noticed it form and whispered to the others about it.

Heart stood waiting for Scootaloo. All of the rulers had come. Many of Scootaloo's family had come. Heart didn't even know all of them. On the other hoof, Heart only had friends. He had no family. It didn't make him sad. He had wonderful friends and didn't need flesh and blood to make him happy. It did bother him that he had deprived himself of family member. He shoved the thought out of his mind.

Racketeer walked in with Scootaloo. All the ponies turned and watched her walk down the isle. Scootaloo smiled. Flames outlined the isle. The flames came four inches off the ground and were yellow. Ponies gasped as they saw it happen. A deep base started up. It was timed to Scootaloo's hoof steps. Every pony could feel the vibration within them. It created a powerful effect. Scootaloo wore a mostly white dress. The end was red on the outside but golden on the inside. A blue patch with the cutie mark crusaders emblem on it.

Heart had not ever seen the dress before and loved it. He knew why Scootaloo picked it. It looked like the CMC cape. It may have not looked as good as some other dresses but it was meaningful and that was more important to Heart. He still thought that Scootaloo was beautiful.

When Scootaloo reached Heart they both smiled at each other and looked at their guests. Some looked confused. Some were awe struck. Heart wanted to laugh but held it in. Celestia did the ceremony. The two said their vows and the guests thought the odd part of the wedding was over. They were wrong. As the newly wedded kissed Rainbow Dash performed a sonic rainboom over the building. It would have been hard to see but Hear used his magic to curved it to cloak the building. Windows lined the sides and the entire room could see it. The pressure difference caused the windows to shatter. The glass flew inside but a protective barrier kept the guests from harm. A few yelps and screams were heard though.

Both Scootaloo and Heart giggled. Heart faced the ponies. "Now it is time for the real fun!"

Scootaloo agreed. "Yeah it is!"

The ponies filed outside to Vinyl Scratch dubing the place up. As Heart and Scootaloo walked out fireworks and demonstration magic lit the sky. It was just a party to Scootaloo and she loved it. Heart enjoyed it because they threw out the rules in it.

Rainbow Dash came up to Heart. "This was sweet! I would never expect such levels of awesome at a wedding."

Heart thought she would enjoy it. "I hoped you would like it. I don't know about the other ponies though. I think we may have scared them."

"Heck yeah you did. I think I saw one being dragged out because she fainted."

"There is more to enjoy. Go get some sweets before Pinkie devours it all."

"Your right." Rainbow flew off.

Twilight walked up to Heart. "You may have gone a little far Heart."

He waved it off. "Naw. It was mostly Scoots idea anyway. I wanted to make her happy."

"You broke the church."

"I knew that would happen. I already paid for the repairs. It was very colorful too."

"Was the fire needed?"

"I think Scootaloo took a little bit too much from her soap operas. She has developed some flare." Heart did a silly motion with his hoof as he said flare.

Twilight shook her head. "I think she may have just picked up on you. Good luck Heart. I need to go make sure that mare is fine. She fainted from your little stunt." Twilight left.

Heart laughed. "So Rainbow was right! Priceless."

After a short vacation with Scootaloo, Heart and Scootaloo moved in to the Canterlot castle. Heart did his work as an adviser for Celestia. It wasn't a hard job since Heart mostly just had to tell Celestia and the others his opinion on matters. He had to be around Celestia most of the day. If she had a public event or some ceremony Heart had no need to be there and had the day off. This was one of those days.

Heart walked down the castle hallway. A flash came from his right side. He looked and saw a certain draconequus. "Hey Discord. What you up to?"

Little holes appeared all over Discord. "I am bored."

"Literally it seems. So why not go find king Chaotic or something?"

Discord ran swiped his paw over his body turning it into it's normal form. "He is off doing something. Seems I am the only one not doing something today. I was curious if you had plans?"

Heart didn't. He was just going to go read at the library. "Not really. Scootaloo is spending the day with Rainbow Dash. If you want to do something we can."

"That is exactly what I want." Discord teleported Heart outside. A tennis court had been set up and Discord not sported a pink polo and white short. A white cap toped the get up off.

"I was going to ask what you wanted to play but it seems I have my answer."

"I do enjoy a little tennis. You play any?"

Heart shook his head. "No I have never played. I have seen some matches but never did it myself."

"So you understand the rules?"

"Yeah I just haven't played."

"It is simple enough to learn." Discord snapped his fingers and a racket appeared in his hands. Another one lye on the grass next to Heart. Discord moved to his end of the court. "Get ready and I will serve first."

Heart levitated the racket and moved to his end. They began to play and Heart found out that the ball appeared to go a lot faster when you are the one swinging. Heart had trouble hitting it and when he did manage to hit it he was poor at aiming. If he managed to hit it, he hit it too hard. Heart wanted to take his mind off his horrible game. "I never saw you as a tennis player."

Discord hit the ball Heart's direction. "Well when you have to look the part of royalty there isn't a lot of things you can do. I can't go around making it rain chocolate milk all the time. It would make me look bad. You ponies have a bad enough image of me as it is."

"There is that golf like thing. You know? The one with the hammer and the little rings in the ground."

"Are you talking about croquet?"

"Yeah. I am sorry I am not up to date with my sports."

"Do you know how that is played? That is so boring. I do like golf though. You ever play that?"

"No I have not. I have wanted to. Never had the chance. Played mini golf but that doesn't count."

"Your right it doesn't count. How about we call this quits and play that instead?"

"Oh, thank you. I am terrible at this."

Discord laughed. "Yeah I can tell." With a snap Heart had a compete change in scenery. "This might be a little more your speed."

"You mean slow?"

"I wasn't saying that at all."

"I know. Show how it is done and I will follow your lead." Heart watched as Discord set up his ball before swinging and launching it across the field of grass. "You said that you thought croquet was boring. Doesn't most anything normal seem boring to you?"

Discord moved aside so that Heart could attempt to play. "I won't lie. Most days are dull but I would rather have it this way than the past."

Heart swung and managed to hit the golf ball. It didn't go far but he hit it. "Wow I am even surprised I hit that. What exactly do you enjoy more about now than back when your were free to do whatever you wanted?"

The two moved up while talking. "I do miss my absolute freedom but I now realize how wrong I was. I see that I hurt others when I do that. I don't want that. It started as me just liking some ponies and not wanting to upset them but when I took a role as a leader, I took responsibility for all of the ponies. I became more sympathetic towards all. In the past I was childish. I only cared about myself."

Heart didn't like the past but for a different reason. "Yeah the past sometimes is better left there but it serves a better purpose. It gives us perspective. We can see how we were and what needs to be changed. You can be proud of yourself now. You have changed for the better. The past is just a reminder to not fall from grace once more."

Discord thought about Tirek. How he had betrayed Celestia and his friends. "But I did. I failed everypony and succumbed to my want and betrayed my friends." Discord regretted every moment of the decision.

"Would you ever do it again?"

"No. Never."

"I will tell you the same thing I told Celestia. You didn't fail. You learned from a mistake. A failure is when you don't benefit at all. Making mistakes are one thing but failing is a whole other thing. Don't beat yourself up now. There isn't any point in it now."

The game progressed while Discord and Heart talked. It was a fun time for both participants. It was Heart's turn and lat go he managed to get his ball in a sand trap.

Heart lined up and swung. He hit the sand but missed the ball completely. He tried again. Again he failed. He started to become agitated after the fourth swing. He started just swiping the sand repeatedly. "WHY!… CAN'T!… I!… HIT!…. IT! He eventually gave up and took the ball and melted it with his magic. He looked at Discord and answered through pants. "I… need…a new… ball."

Discord held back his laughter. He placed the new ball on the grass. "Don't have a heart attack. It is just a game."

Heart swung and hit the ball. "I will be ok. That ball received a Heart attack. It deserved it."

"That was a horrible pun Heart."

Heart smiled. "Good thing I am not a comedian than."

A few weeks past and Heart managed another day free. He decided to get to know the rulers better. Today he picked Luna. He had some experience with all of the rulers but her. Heart had been around her and talked but it was always during some event or for work. He had never spent time with her as a friend.

It some time to look for her but eventually he found her outside near the garden. While he approached he heard her say something under her breathe. "Another beautiful day sister." She smiled looking at the flowers in the garden.

Heart took a seat across from her. "Hello Luna. I was told you are free today."

"Hello Heart. Yes that is true. What do you need?"

Heart looked at the wide variety of flowers and their numerous colors. "I wanted to spend some time with you. Get to know you more. It is a beautiful day today."

"You heard me didn't you?"

"Yes I did. I agree with you. Celestia creates some beautiful things."

"What do you think of my night?" Luna did not look for his approval but wanted to see if he would try to suck up to her.

"I would say I prefer the night. To be completely honest I don't favor either for their beauty. I have never found much beauty in nature. I only prefer the night because of the quiet. When every pony is asleep and I can do what I want without having to think if any pony is watching. If the day was like that than I would favor the day. To answer your question. I say the night holds it's own beauty but I don't care for it. I will leave the admiration to others. I hope this doesn't offend you but I won't lie about my opinion."

"You have done quite the opposite Heart. I wish you enjoyed my night but I respect your honesty. Most ponies just agree with whatever my colleagues and I say. It becomes annoying over time."

Heart had something he had been thinking about doing. He had not had the opportunity to play in a long time and hoped Luna wanted to do it. "Never did like suck ups. How about we talk over a game. I haven't played in a while and was wondering if you liked chess?"

Luna nodded. "I do. I bug Chaotic with it. It gets to him because he never wins."

"Does he get mad?"

"Oh no he just pretends to so that I will give him consolation." Heart raised an eyebrow. "Don't give me that look. I see Scootaloo's dreams. I know you know what I mean."

"Well how about we play a friendly game? Scootaloo doesn't enjoy losing all the time so I rarely get to play."

"I don't see why not."

Heart teleported a chess board an the table between them. It was a simple wooden board with wooden pieces of different color. "Let us begin than."

Luna went first.

Heart moved and began to talk. He didn't want it to seem competitive. "So I have a question." Luna looked up paying attention to Heart. "You said you see Scootaloo's dreams. Do you see mine?"

Luna was curious if Heart would ask about his dreams. "Heart, I know you see nothing when you sleep. You have me to thank for that. Otherwise you would have nightmares all the time."

"So I just don't have dreams? I thought that I just forgot them."

Luna resumed to play and looked away from Heart. "No Heart. I don't know why but you don't have dreams. I am sorry but that is the truth."

"What are my nightmares about?"

Luna shook her head. "I will not share them with you. I stopped you from seeing them for a reason. You have no need for them. They would only bring you pain."

Heart didn't like being denied something that was his. "But they are mine. I have the right to see or at least know about them."

Luna looked up from the board. "Why would you want to see them? Do you want to experience more pain? I have seen many of your dreams and I have sorted out what is imagination and what is memory. I do not know the whole story but I do know some things. I have seen a few of you memories of your mother and your brother. And a few about your father. Do you really want to relive those moments?"

Heart closed his eyes and shook his head. "No."

"Than don't pry where you have been told not to."

Heart left the discussion behind and talked about better things. "How is Moon Love?"

Luna always smiled when thinking of her child. "She is growing so fast. Such a beautiful little filly. I wish I could be with her right now but she needs to learn. I can't just interrupt her lessons when I want to see her."

Heart liked seeing Moon around. "She wants to be just like you, you know. She is adorable. She will do the kingdom proud one day."

"Thank you. You ever think about kids?"

"I have thought about it and I say no. I don't want kids."

"What? Why? It is great having children."

"I don't want Scootaloo weighted down like that. I want her to be able to go have an adventure or go out and have fun when she feels like it. She won't be able to do that if we have kids. You know what I mean?"

Luna made her move on the chess board then looked up at Heart. "Heart, I have been alive a long time. I have seen many ponies lie. You are a poor liar. You are afraid that you won't be a capable father. You are afraid you will fail any children you have. You are scared because you were never taught to be a father. You have to get past this. You are depriving Scootaloo of a dream. You are hurting her because you are afraid. You fail to see that you are in a better place than most to be a father. You are afraid which shows that you understand how much responsibility it is. You should have more confidence. You are a very capable pony." Luna looked back to the game. "I forgot to mention, checkmate."

Heart had been paying attention to Luna and hadn't notice it. "Wait, what!?" Heart tried to look for a way out. "Damn it. Rematch?"

Luna smiled. "Why not? You are good at this game, not as good as me but I have had a lot of practice."

Luna and Heart played a few more games before they went their separate ways. Heart thought about Luna's words.

Two years passed and Heart and Scootaloo stayed in Canterlot castle. Heart had become friends with all of the rulers. New branches of the Lantern program had popped up. All of the major cities had a Lantern program. It had been made possible because Celestia had given Heart more funding for it after seeing it's success in Ponyville. Celestia couldn't figure out why but whenever a Lantern program had been started shortly afterwards crime rates drastically dropped. Most of Equestria saw the Lanterns as a force of good. They were respected and trusted

Heart was in the throne room with the rulers. They were waiting on a business pony to present her case to them. Heart was surprised when the pony showed up.

It was Diamond Tiara. She walked in the room with confidence. She cleared her throat. "My esteemed leaders. I come here to ask for support. My businesses have been suffering this year and might go under if cannot get support. I want a tax reduction. It will benefit Equestria in the long run. My business are a large part of our economy and if we bankrupt Equestria would be unstable."

Celestia understood that these businesses were important. "How much do you need?"

"Half. If you cut them in half we would be able to ensure continuation."

Diamond Tiara had inherited her fathers business empire. She knew how much the businesses meant to the economy. The rulers put it to a vote. They all agreed to it. Heart had a different opinion. "She is lieing."

Discord looked to Heart. "How can you say that? How are you sure?"

"I can see it in her core. She hides it well but she is scared that we will see through this plan."

Diamond defended herself. "I am not lieing. Heart's Vision is sore about our past. He is trying to get back at me for when we young."

The rulers knew about Heart's past. He never told them about breaking her legs because it is a crime so to them he never got revenge. They sided with Tiara. They thought he was enacting his revenge.

Heart couldn't believe this. "I am not! I am telling the truth. She is a bad pony trying to use you."

Discord sighed. "Heart. You have to look beyond your past. It has been a long time since your school days. She has grown, let things be." He turned to Tiara. "You will have your support."

Tiara bowed. "Thank you." She walked away. As she left no pony could see her face. No pony could see her sinister smile.

Heart was enraged. He did not want to be seen. He teleported away. He was in the park in Ponyville. "Fucking bullshit! I know that bitch was lieing. Why won't they listen to me!" Heart cut down a tree with his magic.

He thought he was alone but Sun Petal was sitting on a bench reading. "Are you ok Heart?"

Heart turned. "Petal. I didn't see you. I am…" He was going to say fine but he stopped. "I am pissed. The rulers never listen to me. They made me an advisor but it seems that I am just standing there looking pretty. It is frustrating."

Petal hated seeing Heart upset. "Why do you think they don't listen to you?"

"I don't know."

"Who do they listen to?"

"They listen to Twilight. They listen to Cadence and Shining Armor. They all listen to the other rulers."

Petal put her hoof to her chin. "Hmm. Ah, I think I see the connection. They are all alicorns or in relationships with one. Maybe they don't see you as a equal."

"That does make some sense. I just need to become an alicorn than. Thanks for the help Petal." Heart teleported directly into the throne room. The rulers were talking but stopped when Heart appeared. "I want to ask something of you all."

Celestia was curious. "What do you wish Heart?"

"I have been with you a while now. I am thankful for you allowing me to become adviser but I feel that my talents are wasted here."

"What are you getting at Heart?"

"I want to be an alicorn."

The rulers look to each other. Worried looks were all around. Discord said what they were all thinking. "No."

"What?"

"No. You are not ready for such a responsibility."

"I am. I deserve this. I have started to create brand new spells. You gave me access to the restricted wings of the library. I have read and know there is ways to make me an alicorn but I would need your help. I can't do it on my own. Please give me this. I want to help."

Discord liked Heart but did not want to give such power to one he wasn't sure was ready. "Heart. I will say it again. No. You can help from where you are. There is few alicorns. They are seen as protectors and leaders. Until the time we know you are ready you will remain how you are. When you prove yourself we may gift you with immortality."

Heart was not done. "I want to protect ponies. I want to lead them down the path of good. I can handle it. I know I can."

"This is the last time I will say this. No. Now leave."

Heart grinded his teeth. He teleported away. He was in the same place as before. Petal still sat on the bench. "They denied me. They don't think I am ready. I am. I know that I am."

Petal thought the same. "Yes you are. I know you Heart. You are a wonderful leader. I think that they know that."

"What?"

"They know you are a great leader. They know you are a better leader than they are. They are afraid that you will put them to shame. They fear you Heart. Maybe you should be the one that leads Equestria. I am sorry Heart but I must get going. I don't have wings or magic so I must head to the train station. I am on the way to the Manehatten branch." Petal left Heart with his thought.

Her words echoed in his head. _'Maybe you should lead Equestria. Maybe you should lead Equestria. Maybe you should lead Equestria. Maybe I should lead Equestria.'_

**~ well DLB here and that doesn't sound good does it? oh well he cant be up to anything bad...can he? oh well we will all find out soon im sure! so keep reading! p.s. yes im still hiding in the background.~ DLB**

**A/N: He has been working with me it just seems he wants to not have A/Ns everywhere. It fine cause I can create enough for both us.~ Sci-fi**


	15. A dark day for Equestria

**A/N: This goes up early because I have some extra time this morning. Plus i'm a little excited for this one as well. I hope you enjoy it. ~sci-fi**

Chapter 14: A dark day for Equestria.

Heart's Vision called a meeting with the rulers. Celestia, Discord, Luna, Cadence, and Shining Armor waited for Heart. Chaotic was on a diplomatic trip to the dragon kingdom and couldn't be there.

Cadence didn't know why but Heart had told them it was urgent and that they needed to attend. "Why are we here?"

Celestia had been told the same thing. "I do not know Cadence. Heart wanted to meet us here."

Shining thought this was odd. "Wouldn't you know? I thought Heart was telling us on behalf of you? Is something wrong?"

Discord answered. "I have not detected anything. As far as we know nothing has happened."

"Why has Heart called this meeting than?"

Heart walked into the room.

Shining faced him. "Heart why have you called us here?"

Heart was calm. "Because Equestria is in danger. It has come to my knowledge that it is being deceived. A great force is preventing it from achieving the greatness that it deserves. I must stop this force."

Luna wondered what Heart was speaking of. "What are you talking about? What is hurting Equestria? What must you stop? We can help."

Heart shook his head. "The force I speak of is you. I must stop you all."

There was odd looks around the room. Shining chuckled. "Come on Heart, quit joking and tell us what is going on." Every pony looked at Heart. They saw something that they wished to never see.

Heart stared back at them with a cold gaze. His horn lit up. They realized that he was not joking too late. Shining was about to protect his friends when Heart began his spell. Energy escaped from every pony's horn and headed towards Heart. Discord's magic funneled through him and into Heart along with every pony's. Their cutie marks faded but did not disappear. All but Heart fell to the floor.

Heart took a deep breathe as he felt the magnitude of his new power. "I am sorry every pony. I care for all of you but you have failed Equestria. It is my duty to fix this. I will build a better world."

Celestia looked up at Heart. "Don't do this Heart. Please don't. You are better than this. You can be so much more. Give our power back. Please don't do this, I beg of you."

Heart looked at the alicorn laying on the ground. "I must do this. Do not worry. I left you with enough power to live normal lives. I will lead us to greatness in your absence. Equestria is in good hooves."

Shining narrowed his eyes at Heart. "You are a filthy traitor, nothing more."

Heart turned away. "I am our savior."

Two guards walked in to check on them. They saw the leaders on the ground and raised their weapons at Heart.

Heart frowned. "These will never follow me. They are stuck in their misguided ways." Heart didn't even flinch as the guards were put in bubbles and burnt. When ash remained Heart let down his field. "Too loyal to ponies. They need to be loyal to an ideal." Heart left the powerless rulers behind.

Heart had planned this day. Sun Petal and Lightning Hoof waited for Heart down the hall. As Heart walked down the hall he looked at the painting of great ponies throughout history. "I will earn my place in history."

Petal had not been told what they were doing here. "Heart. Why did you need us?"

Lightning did not know the magnitude of the situation. "Yeah, I had a date with a looker." He whistled. "That flank."

Petal gave Lightning a funny look. Heart didn't have time for jokes. "I am sorry to say this is a serious situation. I need your help. Lightning, I want you to find Chrysalis and tell her to bring a few changelings with her to the castle. Petal, I want you to assemble the guards."

Both agreed and went to complete their task. Heart wanted a minute to himself before talking to the guards. He stood in the hallway watching blankly his Beacons left. _'What am I doing? I have betrayed my friends. I shouldn't be doing this. I need to stop. No. I can't stop now. It is too late. I have to see this through. It must be done.'_ Heart took a few controlled breathes. "Let's start changing the world."

Petal had lined up the guards and was waiting for Heart. Cebby wondered what was going on. "Petal why have you assembled my guards? They need to watch their posts."

Petal did not know what to say. "I am following orders Cebby. Heart will be along shortly to explain, I am sure."

Heart walked out to the training fields where the guards were. "Hello Cebby. Before I begin I must ask something of you."

"What is it Heart?"

"I need you to… resign." Heart enclosed Cebby in a cage. Cebby began to growl. "I am sorry. I can't have you interfering. I won't kill you. I will keep you on a leash. You will be out of that cage soon enough. For now you need to watch." Heart muzzled Cebby so that he wouldn't say anything.

The guards looked uneasy. Heart looked them over. "Those of you who are Lanterns step forward." A few of the guards stepped forward. "You are dismissed." The Lanterns left the other guards behind.

Heart waited to make sure the other Lanterns were gone. "You all have a decision to make. You need to pick a side. You can help us progress to the future or you can try to hold on to the past. Which will it be? Will you follow me or will you cower in the face of change."

A guard spoke. "What are you talking about Heart?"

"I am now the leader of Equestria. Will you follow me into our glorious future?"

"Where is the rulers? What have you done?" The guards looked to each other in fear.

"They have been… relinquished of their command. I did what I had needed to."

"You are a traitor! You will pay for this!" The guard stepped forward and cast a spell towards Heart.

Heart stood fast will a dull look on his face. He put up a shield to block the spell. "You disappoint me. That spell was weak. Like your mind."

Most of the guards rose to back their friend. The unicorns tried spells to stop Heart but did nothing. The earth ponies and pegasi used their might and weapons but Heart's defense couldn't be penetrated. Heart laughed. "You really think that you will stop me? You wouldn't match me with just my power. I now have the power of the strongest ponies in Equestria flowing through me. You are like ants crawling on a dragon, pathetic." Heart dealt lethal blows to each that opposed him. He used simple kinetic spells to deal with most. One guard caught his attention when he blocked the spell with his own magic.

Heart saw some skill in him. "I have ended your friends lives. Do not share their fate. Stand down and live."

The unicorn remained in his fighting stance. "I will never. I took an oath to protect and that is what I will do, 'til my death."

"So be it." Heart over powered the unicorns magic. Heart held him in the air. "I will make it quick." Heart aimed for the pony's heart. The pony died with speed. There were a few guards left. Most had rebelled against Heart and now lye on the ground lifeless. One of the guards still alive looked at his dead friends then back to Heart. He folded his front legs and bowed to Heart.

The others saw this and followed his lead. Heart smiled. "Thank you. I do not like killing those with potential. Your friends were blinded but held commitment. I respect that. It was unfortunate that they had to die." Heart looked at Cebby. "I can't have you attacking me or my kingdom so you will disappear. I am going to put some collars on you that will make me aware of your location. If I think that you are doing something I don't like than they will cause you pain. If you try to remove them, they will kill you. I know that Cerberuses are resilient so I enchanted them to be overkill. I won't go into specifics to give you any ideas of escape but it will be a show if you try to remove even one of them. Oh here is a nice little additive as well. If one is deactivated and the others aren't they all go off. You will most likely kill any ponies around you in the process. Be smart. Don't fiddle with them."

Heart levitated the collars towards Cebby. He tried to avoid them but Heart latched them on. They looked like simple metal rings but as soon as they connected with Cebby's neck they morphed and tightened. Cebby could feel them but if he moved his paws close they started to choke him. Cebby was still muzzled and couldn't say anything but his constant growling was enough information for Heart. Heart teleported Cebby away.

Petal had watched all of this happen. She stood looking at Heart. "Brilliantly done sir. You have spared many lives but made sure that you wouldn't be opposed."

"Thank you Petal." Heart looked to the guards. "Go back to your posts. Turn away any visitors to the castle unless I say they are aloud in." Heart went to the throne room with Petal.

Lightning came in shortly with Chrysalis in tow. Four changeling followed them. Chrysalis didn't know why Heart was alone in the throne room. "Hello Heart. What do I owe the pleasure of this visit to, and why did you want my to bring along company?"

Heart didn't look at the changeling queen. He looked the thrones over. Will a wave of energy he destroyed all of the thrones. The changelings recoiled from the surprise. Heart threw the pieces of the thrones to the corners of the room. He used his magic to erect a new one. It raised from the floor. The top of the throne curved out and folded down. Strands of it flowed away and planted themselves on the walls and floor. They were sharp and edged. Like ice overtaking the room. When it was finish a unsettling pure white throne sat in the place of the four before it.

Chrysalis was uneasy. "That is a nice seat you have there."

Heart sat in it. He gave Chrysalis a cold stare. "It is a throne, my throne."

Chrysalis was truly worried but wanted it to be a lie. "Haha Heart. I hope you can fix all this. Chaotic will not be happy with this."

Heart saw her disbelief and was blunt. "Chrysalis. You are not a fool. You tried this once yourself. Well you tried it more than once but you came exceptionally close one time. You know a hostile takeover when you see one. I am now the ruler of Equestria. The old have been dealt with."

"But Chaotic, Luna ,Celestia, Discord. They were good rulers. They cared for others. They were your friends. Why would you do this?"

Heart was getting tired of being questioned. "I did what I must! They were leading us down a path that was a dead end. They tried but failed. I will not make the same mistakes."

"Heart what do you plan on doing?"

"I will unite all ponies. I will eliminate all evil. I won't let the bad taint the good. I need your help for this. I need your changelings to keep my informed. They have unique abilities that can benefit Equestria."

"You want use to spy. For us to be pawns at your command."

"I want you look for dangers to Equestria."

"No. I will not have my species be controlled. Chaotic let us be on our own. He understood what we were. You see use as tools."

Heart sneered. "No I don't see you as tools. Tools don't reject the user. Tools are useful. You are a pest. If you will not willingly help me than I will make you." Heart grasped a changeling with his magic.

Chrysalis attempted to defend her subject but Heart overpowered her. "Put my child down!"

Heart didn't care. He ripped the bugs wings off. All of the changelings screeched. "Don't you love that hive mind? All I have to do is hurt one and I hurt all. Makes it a lot easier to keep life loss to a minimum. Will you listen to my orders?"

"No!"

"Have it your way." Heart made a small cut in the changeling's chitin. He use his magic to pull it off. Screeching echoed through the room. "This chitin is so solid. So rigid. Like picking a scab. Easily removable." Heart pulled another chunk off. The changeling began to cry. It looked at it's mother with a pleading look.

Chrysalis was on the verge of tears as well. "I can't I must save all of my children."

Heart threw the bug to the ground. He put his hoof on it's head. He started to press. It screeched as it felt itself being crushed. "Don't let your subject die. All you have to do it comply. I will not imprison you. I will even let you keep all of your current perks. You will just be considered part of my kingdom and you will listen to my orders. You will be respected, and loved."

Chrysalis could feel everything her subject was feeling. She knew exactly how it felt. She felt the fear. She gave in. "Stop it! I will do as you say. Please just… stop."

Heart smiled and lifted his hoof off the changeling's head. "That is a good girl. Now I will keep one of your children here to keep you in check. I will not harm it but it will be under guard constantly. It won't escape. I am starting to like enchantments. They have some that don't keep the changeling from changing but marks them with a cutie mark. Great right? Can still communicate and not be harassed but I can give it any symbol so that my ponies know it is a changeling. I pick this one." Heart levitated a random changeling from the group over to him. "The rest of you can go. I will send my orders soon."

Chrysalis hated this. She looked at her injured companion. "Can you at least heal her wings?"

Heart looked at what he had done. "Very well." He healed the changeling and waved the rest away.

All but the captive changeling left. Heart turned to his hostage. "Can you change forms? You are making me uncomfortable." The changeling turned into Scootaloo. "I see you have a death sentence." The changeling quickly turned into it's natural form. "I know you can make your own unique form. I read about it. You mix the traits from different ponies and make your own form." The changeling turned into a completely black mare. "Good, now for your mark." Heart put a spell on the changeling. It gained a cutie mark. It was a solid white heart with a bright red x in the center.

The changeling turned her coat white in response. The heart than turned black. The changeling was surprised. "But it was just white."

Heart was glad the spell worked. "So you choose to speak. Well the thing is that mark will turn into the contrast of your coat. The x will change color to contrast as well. The spell was developed to mark changelings. So it adapts with you."

"Who developed the spell? Changeling are rarely kept around. Before recently we were killed if we were discovered."

Heart was proud. "I made it for this specific occasion. Well I don't necessarily care but I don't want to call you changeling. What is your name?"

The changeling turned back into the completely black form. "I don't want to share my name with you. You may call me Lachrymose."

"As you want Lachrymose. You will not be treated poorly. There is no reason to be gloomy. I will take care of you. If any pony gives you trouble than you can tell me. If you want something to make your stay more bearable than say so. I want you to be comfortable."

Lachrymose huffed. "Sure you do."

Petal sat next to Heart's throne. "I have never met a changeling. I heard terrible stories about them."

Lachrymose hissed at Petal. "Of course you have! Your kind hates us! They fear us because they don't understand us! I had hoped Chaotic would put an end to the hate between our species but now it seems that we will be doomed to servitude or death." Lachrymose saddened. "I thought we could live without fear."

Petal did not get upset at Lachrymose. She went to her side. "I never said that I believe the stories. There is all sorts of stories that don't make sense but are believed because ponies don't understand what they talk about. I remember reading a story from back when earth ponies, unicorns, and pegasi lived apart. Unicorns believed that earth ponies ate dirt. HA! They thought we ate dirt! That is ridiculous. It took a long time to get rid of that belief. But that only happened because we gave each other a chance and learned the truth. Will you give me that chance? I don't want to believe those stories about your kind. I want to know the real you." Petal smiled at the changeling.

Lachrymose believed the pony. "I will tell you. For starters we don't eat your flesh. I don't know how that rumor started. We feed on emotions. We don't sap the ones we feed off of. It doesn't hurt you at all." Lachrymose continued to tell Petal about the changelings.

Heart sat in his throne and thought about his next moves. _'I fear that Chaotic may become too much of a problem. On the other hoof he may see things my way. He is more open minded than the others. I will see in due time.' _

**A/N: A dark day indeed. What do yall think? Can Equestria be saved or is it being saved? Is Heart going to make a better Equestria or will he fail like he thinks his predecessors did? Time will tell. We just have to wait and see. Please review. There is a poll for you to take on my profile. please go take it. it is really easy. Have a nice day! ~sci-fi**


	16. Breaking news

Chapter 15: Breaking news.

Heart's Vision sat in his new throne. Sun Petal continued to talk to Lachrymose. Heart thought of how to break the news to Twilight Sparkle. He decided that the best way was to do it in pony. He told Petal that he would be back shortly. He teleported to Twilight's castle.

He arrived and saw Twilight with the other elements. Heart looked at each of them. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie. "I did not know that you all were here. It does not matter. I would have to inform all of you anyway."

They all looked at Heart. Rainbow spoke. "What you talking about HV?"

Heart took a breathe. "You will like this the least, element of loyalty. Your rulers have been dethroned. They sit helpless in Canterlot."

Gasps were heard all around. Rainbow flew out of her seat. "What! We have to help them! Who did this?"

Heart expected this reaction. "I did." Heart got funny looks. "I will rule Equestria now. I am your leader."

They didn't want to believe it. "Heart this is a bad joke."

Heart shook his head. "It is not a joke. I am serious. I understand that you will want to help your old rulers."

Rainbow interrupted Heart. "Hell yeah we do! You are a traitor! We trusted you! You were our friend and you betray us? What the buck!?"

"I have not betrayed you. I am leading us to a brighter future."

Twilight was disappointed in her student. "Why Heart? What about that talk of helping ponies? Treating each others with respect and kindness? Why stab Celestia in the back like that?"

Heart had enough of them questioning his motives. "I want to help ponies. This is the best way I can do that. You don't understand. You will never understand. You have been given everything in your life. I have had to fight for it! I had to take control! That is what I am doing now. Fighting for what I deserve."

"What are you talking about? I worked and studied just like any other. Celestia saw that I was ready and gifted me."

"You are blind Twilight. She picked you before she even knew you. You are an example of favorites. You don't know what I have done. You don't know me. You will see. I will not take your power. You are young and can still learn. Unlike the others."

Rainbow didn't know how to control herself. She accelerated towards Heart. Heart simple put a shield around himself. Rainbow halted. "We will stop you. We will go to the tree of harmony and use it to stop you!"

Heart couldn't have them doing that. "Well I can stop you but I believe that you won't do that so I won't bother you. If you do decide to go about that plan than I can't be held responsible for any collateral damage. I will be in Canterlot after all. Many ponies around. Who knows how many will be hurt in the fight?"

Rainbow didn't see the threat but Twilight did. "You would hurt innocent ponies just to stop us?"

"No. But accidents happen and if a few get hurt than they are just unfortunate but I can't let you stop me when I am this close. So use your magic if you like. The deaths of any will be on your hooves." Heart teleported away.

Twilight was ashamed of herself. The others looked at her. They tried to comfort her. Applejack gave her a hug. "We will find a way to stop him sugar cube. Don't feel so bad. It ain't your fault."

Twilight believed otherwise. "It is my fault. I am the one who pushed for Heart's position. If I had not done so than he wouldn't have had the opportunity to do this."

"Bad ponies will find a way. It ain't got nothing to do with you. Let's start figuring out a way to fix this."

Heart went back to the castle and spoke to Petal and Lightning Hoof about expanding the Lanterns' role in Equestria. Heart decided that the Lanterns will take over important roles such as royal security. Heart had one more thing to do before the was over.

Heart sat waiting for his company arrive. He was becoming impatient. Diamond Tiara walked in through the double doors. Lighting had brought her here on Heart's order.

Diamond pushed the pegasus away. "Get off me! I am here. What is this about?" Tiara hadn't notice that the old rulers weren't in the room. "Wait.. Heart what are you doing?"

Heart stood up and began walking to the pink pony. "I need to put a few things right. Starting with you. You lied to my face. You lied for your own gain. I had hoped that I changed you in the past but it seems that you just went back to your old ways whenever I wasn't around. I need to correct that. You will not only pay full tax but you personally will have tax increase. I will not punish your business for your crimes. You will be heavily fined as well. You will need to move out of whatever mansion you are currently staying in. You won't be able to afford it."

Tiara was shocked. "You can't do that! The rulers voted in my favor."

"The rulers no longer have the power. I do." Heart looked at that tiara. Diamond still wore it after all these years. "You don't deserve that." Heart took it off her head and stomped it into tiny pieces.

"What are you doing!? That is mine! You can't just do that!"

Heart looked at the whining pony. "Shut up you sniveling bitch. You are pathetic. You are lucky that I don't do worse. I have the power now. I decide what I can't and can do. Leave before I sew your lips together."

Tiara was going to say something but Lightning stepped in front of her. "You heard what he said. Leave."

Tiara turned and left.

Heart had enough of this day. "I am going to bed. Lightning, Petal, Make sure nothing goes wrong while I rest. It has been a long day."

Petal nodded. "Will do sir."

Heart walked to his room. He was surprise when he found Scootaloo there. "What are you doing here Scoot? I figured that you would be somewhere out in Canterlot. Maybe planning a stunt show."

Scootaloo was waiting for Heart to come back. "Well I would be doing that but I needed to speak with you."

"Anything in particular?"

"Yeah. I want to have a foal."

Heart wanted to come and rest not walk into an argument. "Scoot I don't want a kid right now. Especially with today's events."

Scootaloo hadn't been told of anything big happening. "What do you mean after today?"

Heart sat on the bed next to Scootaloo. "I have done something that is irreversible. I have done something great but will not be seen that way to everypony. I have done something that will change our lives."

Scootaloo looked at Heart with concern. "What are you talking about Heart? What have you done?"

"I have taken control of Equestria. I will lead us to our new future. Isn't this great? I no longer will be held back by the others. I can make a real difference."

Scootaloo knew Heart wasn't joking. She could tell by the way he talked. "How did you do this?"

"I took the old rulers powers. They were leading us to nothing. I will lead us to a new world."

Scootaloo loked at Heart blankly. "Heart that is, is, it's wrong. Why did you do this?"

"I did it for all the other ponies of Equestria. I know that it is hard to accept but trust me. Trust me Scoot. When have I betrayed you?"

"You have never, but this is not the same."

"Yes it is. I am leading us now. All you have to do is trust and believe me Scoot. I trust you. Do the same for me. You will always be the most important thing to me. How can I prove this to you?"

Scootaloo thought about it. "You don't need to prove it Heart. I believe you. You have always cared about me."

Heart wanted to see Scootaloo happy. "Thank you Scootaloo. You trust me so I will come clean. It isn't that I don't want a kid. I just don't think I am ready for it."

Scootaloo got a little ahead of herself. "Does this mean you are willing to now?"

"How about we just talk some things over first. Maybe soon but not right now."

Scootaloo was happy with the answer. "Great so let's start talking!"

Heart was successful with diverting Scootaloo's attention. Heart and Scootaloo talked for some time before Heart lowered the sun and raised the moon.

Back in Ponyville Nick was just explained to about Heart. "What! He did what! That little ass! I am going to make him regret this."

Nick was about to fly off when Twilight grabbed him. "Don't I don't want any pony hurt. We need to think this through. We need to tell Chaotic, as well as find the rulers."

Twilight got her work cut in half as the castle door swung open. Discord, Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and Shining Armor walked in. Celestia was carrying Illusion on her back and Luna was doing the same for Moon Love. They all looked weak but were fine. Twilight and Nick took the colt and filly.

Celestia spoke to Twilight. "Twilight something horrible has happened."

Twilight was still blaming herself. She couldn't stand to look Celestia in the eye. "Yes I know and I am sorry."

Celestia thought that this might happen. "It was not your fault Twilight. He deceived us all. I thought he truly wanted to help."

Discord had made a similar mistake and felt he needed to defend Heart. "He may have. I think he was being genuine when he told us about his want to help all ponies. Maybe there is something clouding his judgment."

Shining Armor didn't think the same. "He is just a power hungry pony like Sombra. There is no excuse for this."

Discord became angered at the stallion. "What about me? I made the same mistake. Do you think that I need to be turned back to stone?"

"I never said that. You were different. Heart isn't being influenced by some unknown force."

To the surprise of every pony a unknown voice came from the entrance to the castle. "On the contrary. I think I know what is influencing him and I may be to blame."


	17. Friendly strangers and hostile friends

**A/N: Ok a few things. First is, there is a poll up on my profile for yall to take. I do not know if guests can take the poll but someone should try and get back to me on that. I also want to know what you all think of what Heart has done. I know it accepts guest reviews so please say something. Ask some questions. I love to hear your thoughts and opinions. For any questions I will answer in these A/N. If you have some questions for DLB and you are a guest ask in a review and i will forward it to him. I hope you enjoy this chapter. it should fill in some blanks. ~ sci-fi**

Chapter 16: Friendly strangers and hostile friends

To the surprise of every pony a unknown voice came from the entrance to the castle. "On the contrary. I think I know what is influencing him and I may be to blame." The being stood as taller than Celestia and wore a hooded cloak. Nothing could be seen of this intruder but it was known he was no pony because his shape was more vertical.

As much as Luna wanted to know what this unknown was, and what he meant, Luna knew she had to warn her husband first. So she excused herself and walked out the front door.

The stranger watched as Luna walked out the door. His deep voice was the only sound after the door closed. "I am Dominic." Dominic took his hands and uncovered his face. Dark green scales cover his face. His jaw jutted out giving him a further appearance of a lizard. His eyes were a golden yellow with narrow slits for pupils. He did not smile for he was hiding his razor sharp teeth. He dropped the rest of his cloak on the floor. Unlike his face his body had large think scales. His face had small flexible ones. His body was mostly vertical like a human's but he naturally leaned forward slightly. He had a long whip like tail to help him balance. He had two legs that held two joints for increased power. He had four fingers and two thumbs on each hand, one on each side. All of them sunk in at the tips. Inside the ends of those fingers were hide tearing claws. His body screamed predator. "I am a Slican."

Every pony looked at the creature. The rulers did not seem scared but the elements were very cautious. Rainbow was bold. "Are you some kind of dragon?"

Dominic shook his head. "No. This is as large as I will ever grow and I cannot breath fire. We do share certain traits however."

Twilight had read about these creature but had never seen one. "What are you doing here?"

"I am here to help with Heart's Vision. We can talk about that after we are all here. I will answer questions but let us keep the conversation off of Heart's Vision."

Luna hoped for the best. She whistled and after a few seconds she heard a howl. She wasn't expecting Cebby to be close but he was and came bounding to the front of the castle and stopped in front of her before his middle head nuzzled the mare. "I am so happy that you are ok! When that worthless pony told us you were no longer ruling I thought the worst! Are the others ok as well?" Cebby looked Luna worried but still relieved.

Luna hugged the big dog happy to see he was alive as well. "He stole our power but let us live for some reason. I won't complain. But my link to Chaotic was severed when he did so. I heard Heart say he was going to talk to the changelings as well. So he will be warned of what's going on and think the worst as well. So we must warn him not to attack Heart and that we are ok. The children are fine and have their magic so all is well with them. so please send this letter. You're the only one that can reach him now." Cebby nodded and used his green fire skill to send the message directly to Chaotic.

Chaotic was having a simple conversation about the new contract between dragons and ponies when he felt a head ach form. He knew something was wrong when he felt fear. But it wasn't him or coming from him. it was coming from the hive mind, meaning Chrysalis and the other changelings were in danger. He opened the hive mind fully to see what was going on and he saw through Chrysalis' eyes. He saw Heart on a new throne in the castle, his castle. Then he saw Heart torture a poor changeling. He heard and felt their screams and pain. He heard Chrysalis agree to his terms. Then in the hive mind only she said something that shook him to his core. "Help us!"

Chaotic was now pissed off knowing his friends were in danger. And what was worse was that he couldn't reach Luna through their connection very well if at all. That made him fear the worst for his wife and their fellow rulers, and even worse his child and nephew. "No this can't be. I trusted him!" Chaotic's eyes had started to glow in his anger when the dragon king spoke up. "Chaotic, is everything ok? What's wrong to make you act like this." Chaotic had forgot where he was for a moment and went back to normal as he stood up.

"I am sorry but I must go home at once. My family could be hurt or in danger. Someone else has taken the throne and I don't know what he has done or plans to do. I must go. Please forgive me." Chaotic had turned and started to run to get outside. The dragon king flew to catch up to him. "You have my support in all aspects, should I get my army ready to assist you?" Chaotic shook his head no. "No I will need you to stay out of this so no more innocent lives are taken. I have a feeling he has already killed many that were loyal to us so please just call all dragons out of Equestria for now. It will be safer for everyone. And if you could spread the word to the Griffin king and the leader of the Cerberus as well I will be in your debt."

The dragon king nodded and under stood. "It shall be done. Equestria is under martial law and off limits until further notice on order of the kings for the safety of the peoples. Stay safe my friend and I hope your family is safe. Winds speed." Then the dragon king flew off to spread the word to the rest of his kingdom and the griffon kingdom as well. Chaotic nodded as he left and burst out into the open and took off into the sky as fast as he could. he couldn't teleport or he would be giving away his location and element of surprise if he did. So flying had to do it.

Chaotic was almost half way home when a flash of green fire appeared in front of him. "Oh thank god! Cebby is alive!" then Chaotic hovered a few moments to read the letter. It was from Luna saying that they were alive and ok for the moment being, just had their magic stolen. It also told him where they were and to not face Heart. "Fine, I wont for now, but I need to get to them as soon as I can." So Chaotic changed course for Ponyville.

Luna sat waiting outside the castle fearing for the worst. "Now we wait and hope he received it in time." The two waited until they saw a red blur flying in their direction. For a second they were worried it was an attack from Heart, but once they saw the color and size they knew it wasn't an attack. Cebby's tail started to wag as Luna smiled as the blur started to slow down and reveal the shape of a worried looking alicorn. Chaotic landed and ran to Luna and Cebby. "On thank the heavens your both ok! And the kids?" Luna answered fast to calm her husband. "They are both ok and still have their magic as well. So for now we are ok. But we need to go speak with the others. There is something here that thinks he knows why Heart is doing this. He should be speaking to Tia and Twilight now."

Chaotic nodded and kisses Luna before hugging Cebby and walking into the castle with them. "Moon! Its so good to see you!" Moon was playing with illusion when Chaotic came in and she stopped on a dime and ran to him. Chaotic smiled as he picked up his daughter and hugged her. Illusion had run over as well and Chaotic rubbed his head gently. "hey there bud how are you doing?" Both answered at the same time. "Good!" Chaotic laughed lightly happy that they were ok. "Good, now I'm sorry I can't play like I said I would when I got back, but I have a few things to take care of now. So go play and we will have to make up for it later ok?" Both smiled and nodded. "OK!" and then they were off.

Then Chaotic's look hardened slightly as he trotted up to the others. "Good to see you are all ok. But I must ask, what are you? And what is it you think is going on With Heart to make him do this? I'm sorry for the small amount of formalities but my family was just attacked so please forgive me if I want to make sure it stays that way. So please fill me in on the situation."

Dominic looked at the over throne king. "There is nothing you can do right now so calm down Chaotic Love. We were waiting on you to talk about Heart's Vision. I think I know what is wrong with him."

All the ponies and draconequus sat down and paid attention to Dominic. "I am Dominic Brightstone. I am a Slican. A long time ago when I still lived among my own kind I was part of a team that was tasked with a fascination of my ruler at the time. We were to find out how magic worked and if we could harness it. We performed experiments on magical artifacts with no luck. We decided that the best course of action was to kidnap ponies and perform experiments on them. We stole unicorns and did just that. We knew nothing of magic and many died from our experiments."

"We discovered what we believed was a written down ritual that would harness a ponies magic and transfer it to an object. We did not understand the language it was written in but we thought we knew what to do. We stumbled blindly into the ritual. We tried to transfer the magic of a female pony into a small stone. After we did the experiment we spent a long time analyzing the stone and deemed it a failure. That ritual was our last hope. The entire project was shut down after that."

"The pony that we performed the ritual on was Rose Spade, Heart's mother. We set her free after the ritual. At the time we were unaware that she was pregnant. I believe that our ritual was successful and transferred the magic to Heart. This would not be a problem if not for the state that my country was in. My country was at war. We were having a civil war and to top it all off brutal blizzards covered our land. We did not know what was happening. Equestria has experience the same thing as we did. Windegos spirits."

Twilight interrupted. "You say it all in past tense. You got rid of the Windegos? Did you use the magic of friendship?"

Dominic did not mind the pony asking questions. "We did get rid of them but not as you did. My kind knows nothing of your ways. We have been fighting for as long as any can remember. We got rid of them on accident. The ritual we performed was a transfer of magic ritual but we failed to fully understand it. I think we ended up transferring the windegos into Heart."

Chaotic nodded and sat down to think. "so if that's the case, all of those horrible spirits would be put into and affect him without him knowing. And it would turn his otherwise well meaning thoughts into horrors. And this explains why Luna has to keep him from dreaming." Luna nodded at the logic. "It also explains why I have never been able to just change them like other ponies. most ponies I can just get rid of the fear and make it a blank dream but I could never change any of his. so this could explain that as well as his recent actions." Chaotic nodded but had to think more on it. "So did this spell of yours have a counter? or do you know where the remnants of it would be so we could see it for ourselves?"

Dominic wished he had the answer. "Sadly I do not. There was no counter mentioned in the text or we did not catch it. The text was also lost a long time ago. I have no solutions to this problem. I only came here to inform you and to offer my help. I am responsible for this and I need to fix it."

Chaotic agreed to some extent. "I agree you should make amends and I am glad you agree and are willing to help. I just wish this would have come up sooner, like before he attacked my family. but what happened did and now we must all work together to fix it. starting with figuring out what that spell was in the first place."

Twilight spoke up. "Yes we do but we also need to save the ponies of Equestria. Some pony needs to resist Heart's rule. We can't let him rule Equestria unopposed."

Dominic had seen what happens when countries dispute over who their leader should be. "Twilight we cannot do that. If we do that then blood will be shed, many ponies will die. The hate from the conflict might give Heart more strength. It has to be sneaky." Dominic looked to Chaotic. "I believe that the old king is the right pony for the job."

Chaotic sighed knowing where this was going. "I hate your idea for the record, but if it means my family and ponies are safe then I will do what I must. what exactly are your plans?"

Dominic didn't like it but saw it as necessary. "I purpose that Chaotic pretends to support Heart."

Rainbow butted in. "What!? Why would he do that?"

Dominic continued. "Because he is the only one who hasn't interacted with Heart. He is the only one that has yet to openly oppose Heart. He is the only one that can trick Heart into thinking that he is on his side. We can use this to our advantage. Chaotic will be our spy and try to do damage control. This way we are not sitting around doing nothing while Heart rules. While he is doing this Twilight and I will search for a way to rid Heart of the windegos."

Twilight felt as if she had missed something. "Why me?"

Celestia answered for Dominic. "Because we are in no shape to do it. It seems once again our fate rests on you my dear student." Celestia looked to Chaotic. "Are you up for the task? I know you are not the one to back down but this is a slightly different situation."

Chaotic sighed and nodded. "I may not like this plan, but I don't see another at this time that will lead to anything but all out war and more deaths than we can count. so I will do as you suggest and leave shortly. but I must prepare for this. both mentally and with my family. first off. Cebby the dragon king is notifying the griffin king and Cerberus leader that Equestria is on lock down and that all creatures beside ponies are to leave for their own safety. so spread the word all you can without the lanterns getting wind of it. if we can get those species out of here it can help from causing a war with them before this gets taken care of. it will hurt many business right now, but in the long run it will save the lives of many in each species. and what is with those?"

Chaotic was pointing to the new collars that he knew weren't a good thing. Cebby growled angrily. "That bastard put these on me to keep me from doing anything he doesn't like and control me. Hknew I wouldn't betray you so instead of killing me he did this. I don't know why he killed the other guards but not me." Chaotic nodded. "If I am correct it is because you are a son to me. so your loyalty was more to your parents than to us as rules. so he spared you on that account if I am right. that just means he still has a true heart in there some where. and I am truly thankful for that." Cebby and the others nodded as Chaotic sighed and started to write letters to the other species rulers so that they would know the situation and plan so that a war would not begin over what happened next, no matter what it was.

Chaotic then sent them out using Cebby's magic so that they could not be traced or intercepted. "That should do for now. I am not supposed to return till tonight, as much I will continue to plan with you Dominic and spending time with Luna and Moon before I go. since this might be the last time I see you for a while. but I will not let you go near him until this is resolved. so Dominic what other plans do you have?"

Dominic had nothing more. "No, I can only tell you to be careful. Try to get in a position to disable Heart. Don't try to make a move on your own. If you make a mistake everyone you know will suffer."

Chaotic nodded at the advise. "Thank you for your help on this. It means a lot to me and my family. and once this is over, I will personally make sure you are taken care of for all of your help." Then he turned to Cebby once again. "I know you want to help me on this mission like so many others, but this time I need you at home base protecting Luna, Moon, and the rest of the fam ok?" Cebby nodded knowing the importance of this mission and knew it meant more that he would protect the family then fight the enemy. "Thanks. ok now that that's taken care of." Chaotic turned to Luna who looked like she was going to cry.

"I don't want you to go. this is to dangerous." Chaotic sighed knowing the risks. "I know my dear but it must be done to save the lives of our family, friends, and many of the ponies we rule over. So please know I will see you every night in your dreams while I protect as many as I can." Luna hugged her husband trying not to cry. but then they heard a sad voice that made Chaotic want to cry himself. "Your leaving again? but you just got back, and what about our play time?"

Chaotic sighed and pulled his daughter into the hug. "I know none of this was planned and you want me to stay. but I must go and take care of this so less ponies get hurt. I know you don't want ponies hurt or scared. so I will make you this promise. I will go and help who ever I can how ever I can, and when this blows over you and I can go on a big camping trip with whoever you want to. even if its just you and me. sound like a deal?" Moon still didn't like the idea of her daddy leaving them here, but she was smarter then most young ones and knew it was for the better. "Ok. but I want a camping trip with you, me, and mommy all by ourselves." She stuck her little hoof out to make the deal and Chaotic and Luna smiled. "My little negotiator. its a deal." then the family sat there for a while talking and even playing a word game until Chaotic had to leave for his mission.

"I will see all of you later my friends. and you as well my two loves. I will try and make this quick as I ask you do as well Twilight and Dominic. Fly and act as fast as the wind and i shall do all i can in the mean time. until we meet again. farewell." then Chaotic flew to the castle where he knew that bastard Heart would be. "Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer."

_Heart's Vision walked into his room. Scootaloo sat on the bed reading. "I have great news Scoot. I did it. I have changed all of Equestria. Every pony is kind to one another and working together for a greater world." _

_Scootaloo looked up lazily at Heart. "Sounds great." He answer was unenthusiastic._

_Heart didn't understand. "What is wrong Scoot?" _

"_Nothing is wrong. I just have some news of my own." Scootaloo got up and walked over to Heart. "I no longer want to be with you. I am leaving." _

_Heart felt like he had been disemboweled. "What?" _

"_I am sick of waiting around for you to decide if you want a kid or not. I am tired of doing nothing while you rule Equestria. I am going to leave and never come back." Scootaloo began to walk towards the door. _

_Heart didn't know what to do. "NO! don't leave! I have finally done everything. I can now give you everything you deserve. Don't leave me now that I have finally put everything in order." _

"_You failed Heart. I no longer love you. I can no longer love you." Scootaloo left Heart alone in the room. Heart stared at the door not understanding anything. He fell to his knees. _

_Heart sat there crying. He didn't know what went wrong. He opened his eyes and saw a blade laying on the floor. He reached for it._

"HEART!"

Heart was shaken awake by Scootaloo. "Huh?"

"Finally you wake up. Are you ok?"

Heart was confused. He rubbed his face. He felt the tears he was shedding moments ago. He realized that he had been dreaming. "Yeah. I am ok."

Scootaloo still looked worried. "What was that all about?"

"What was what about?"

"You were tossing and turning. You woke me up with all that. I look over to you and you are crying. I tried waking you up but you wouldn't."

"I am sorry. I just had a nightmare. His initial confusion wore off and he remembered what he had dreamt about. Upon remembering he grasped Scootaloo in a tight embrace.

She was taken by surprise and let out a yelp. "What the heck Heart!?"

Heart rubbed his face on her fur. "I just remembered what I was dreaming about. I never want to lose you Scoot. Please promise me that you will never leave me."

Scootaloo brushed it off. "Heart you are so silly. I would never leave you."

"Promise me."

"Fine, I promise. Now stop messing around. You need to get up."

"Why do you think I need to get up?"

"Because you woke me up and I can't fall back asleep."

Heart had a smirk. "So I have to get up because of that?"

"You don't get to sleep if I don't."

"Now what kind of deal is that? I got to suffer just because you can't fall back asleep?"

"I wouldn't even be awake if it wasn't for you. I may forgive you if you go get me food."

Heart realized that this was all a big plan so that she could be lazy. "You surprise me sometimes."

Scootaloo raised a brow. "I know I do but what has gotten you this time?"

"The extent of laziness that comes from such an athletic pony is ridiculous."

Scootaloo did a fake gasp. "I am offended. How dare you slander me so? You must not want my company this afternoon."

Heart answered in a sarcastic voice. "Oh no. What have I done. What will I ever do without the all mighty Scootaloo."

"Are you tempting me?"

Heart smiled. "I would never want to go without your company."

"Then go get me FOOD! I'm starving over here."

"I will go get your food. Love you Scoot." He kissed Scootaloo and left. He had a little time before the sun was to be raised. He went to the empty kitchen and began fixing food. Before he went back he raised the sun. It was a little early but it wouldn't hurt anything. He brought back the food to Scootaloo and they talked together while she ate.

Heart had to leave to attend to royal business. It was the start to another busy day.

Heart sat on his throne. Sun Petal and Lead Road were next him. Road had just received the news from Heart. "Do you really think this is the right move?

Heart gave Road an odd look. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that the rulers didn't do anything to bad. They made mistakes sometimes but overall they did a good job. Did they deserve what you have done?"

Heart did not get the chance to respond. Sun Petal did it for him. "Are you doubting Heart?"

Road looked at Petal. He saw something that scared him. She watched him, her eyes void of any sympathy or understanding. She waited for him to respond. Road backed down from the argument. "No. Heart has always done right. He deserves this." Road felt part of him scream no as he lied.

Petal backed off and smiled. "Good to hear. Heart, what is our plan for today?"

Heart began to explain how they needed to start broadcasting Heart's presence on the throne. He told Petal to organize a speech. Heart would personally tell Equestria who ruled them.

To Heart's surprise a guard came in. "Heart's Vision I have a pony that wishes to see you." The guard moved out of the way and revealed Chaotic Love.

Heart stood up and readied himself incase Chaotic tried anything. "What do you want Chaotic? Are you here to try and reclaim what was once yours? I will warn you that you will not be successful. I hold more power in me than you could possibly match. You stand no hope in defeating me in combat. So will you try or will you be smart? You aren't known for making dumb choices."

Chaotic had to hold in his anger. He wanted to shut this asshole up but he knew that even if he managed to win many would be hurt in the process. He saw something he wasn't expecting. A changeling was sitting near the throne. She was in the form of a pony but Chaotic could tell what she really was. She looked at him with hope in her eyes.

Chaotic bowed his head slightly then spoke with authority. "Though I will never bow to a pony that stole from my family, I will not oppose your rule until I see it for myself. if it happens to be better than my family's then you stay king as long as you wish. if it fails to help the ponies without hurting any others than those you have already killed without mercy, then I will decide if I will oppose you. until then I merely wish to be an adviser and follow your rule. do you accept my offer?" Chaotic stood there with a blank look waiting to see what Heart would say. even with the saddened look of the changeling he stood strong.

Heart was cautious but couldn't pass up on this opportunity. "I won't turn my back to you. I can't trust you but maybe you can prove that you aren't just trying to get close so that you can stab me in the back." Chaotic didn't show it but a sliver of fear appeared in his mind as Heart stated his plan. "As the first test of this I want you to support me when I address Equestria. I want you to tell them that I have your support and not to resist my rule. I do not want to kill any pony but some will resist and I cannot have that. Will you do this?"

Chaotic nodded with the still blank face. "As long as you understand I will not bow down to you. I will bow my head in respect but any further and I will be betraying my family, and I will not do this. so I will support you at your speech, if nothing else so that less ponies are hurt. and so that the changelings know that it is ok and they will not be hurt either. but you have my support until I make my full decision. but this seems a decent step to make sure no harm comes to the ponies you know rule. so when is the speech that I am giving my support at?"

Heart smiled. It was genuine smile. "I am glad you made the right choice. I understand you cannot bow to me but it is nice that I can have a friend by my side. I wish the others would have seen it my way. The speech will be later this evening. For now you can come and sit by me. Tell me how your trip was."

Chaotic was pissed on the inside but hid it well as he took his place next to the changeling that he gave a reassuring hug to. "You call it right i call it logical. and after attacking my family, friend might be a stretch. but the trip was fine. the dragon king was helpful as usual. and he knows that you took over so they are staying away until things calm down so that there is not a war. he is also spreading word to the griffin king so the same happens there. that last thing you should want is a war with either of them. especially if they team up. so luckily i took care of that before i left. besides your interruption it was a fun trip like usual."

Heart wished that Chaotic wasn't so protective over his family. Heart understood but he was holding a grudge over nothing. "I am glad that war will not come to Equestria. That is the last thing I want. I do want you to stop saying that I attacked your family. I did no such thing. None of them were harmed. I didn't touch Moon or Illusion, so that it would not interfere with their growth. . I even let the others keep a small portion of their power so that they may perform mundane tasks. I did nothing to Twilight, Nick or you. I feared taking Nick's or your power would be harmful because of not being a true pony. I made sure not to harm any of you. Taking extra risk in doing so because I know Nick. He will want revenge for this so called attack. I sincerely surprised you decided to side with me. I was expecting to have to fight you." Heart looked at Chaotic waiting for a response.

Chaotic looked blank faced again. "So you don't think any of that is a betrayal of any friendship we had? or is considered an attack against the royals? then you truly don't know what its like to feel betrayed, and learned nothing from your brothers ignorance then. I am truly grateful for the mercy you have shown and will not complain about that in any way. I thank you for letting them live and even have some magic, but I shouldn't have to be in the first place. As for the reason to give you a chance is like I said, you may actually do a better job then we have. and I wish to see what you are capable of. if this works out well, then we can take a vacation and let you take over for good. I have wanted a vacation with my family for a while, so this might work out well for that is why I am siding with you. I have told you I have seen great potential in you before. though I don't approve of how you gained power, it does not mean you can not rule effectively and with a heart."

Heart held his rage back. "Don't ever compare me to my brother. I will never be like him. I did in a way betray your family but it was small, but if I had not I would have been betraying Equestria. I took action. Those who sit idle are as bad as the ones who do evil. I decided a long time ago that I would not sit idle, I will always take action against progress. That is what I did with my brother. That is what I have done here. This time is not for me. This time it is for all ponies of Equestria. I have a vision for Equestria, and I will make it happen. I will make a beautiful nation. I will make a perfect nation. If I have to labeled a traitor so be it. My goal is too important for me to be worried about my image. Every pony will see in time that I am right, I just need time to open their eyes."

Chaotic was about to say something but Petal walked in. "Heart it is time for your speech."

Heart looked to Petal. "Thank you Petal. You organized this much faster than I expected. You never disappoint." Heart looked back at Chaotic. "We are needed elsewhere, let's not keep the ponies waiting." Petal lead the two to a balcony. Below was a crowd of ponies watching and waiting for their rulers to come and speak. They were surprised when they saw Heart, then Chaotic.

Heart looked at all of them. He used magic to amplify his voice. "Ponies of Equestria, I am Heart's Vision. Some may know me as an advisor to Celestia. Some may know me as a the leader of the Lantern program. Some may even know me as a friend. One of those is now a lie. I am no longer an adviser, because Celestia is no longer one of your rulers." Every ponies expressions turned to confusion. "Luna and Discord share Celestia's fate. From this day forward the pony in charge is me. I am your king. Together we will carve a new path to the future. A future full of change and wonder. A glorious future free of evil. I know that some may fear this drastic change but don't. Only those who are evil and hurt other ponies should be afraid. I know that most of you don't know me so I have brought a pony to help reassure you." Heart turned to Chaotic and gestured for him to talk.

Chaotic stepped forward and amplified his voice. "What he says is true, my family is no longer the rulers, but do not worry. we are all alive and well. so there is no need to worry or seek revenge for anything. this change in power will go smoothly and less ponies will be hurt as long as you all just go with this like I have. it is both the logical and more than likely best course of action. so see this more as the royals you know are on vacation or have retired, which ever makes this transition easier for you to understand. yes things might change, but do not resist it and everything will be fine. I thank you in advance for listening to me and my request. if any of you wish to speak to me further i will be in the castle and reachable at almost any time." Then Chaotic stepped back and nodded to Heart to show he was done speaking.

Heart was glad that Chaotic was helping with the transition. Heart once again spoke. He had one more thing to say. "Listen to your old king. He is smart and is on my side. I will not waste his experience and he shall be assisting me as an adviser. If any of you want to know what the future holds than look to the Lanterns. They shall be your example. Let them guide you into our new beginning. When you are lost in the dark our light shall guide you."

Heart left with Chaotic. He had a pony show Chaotic to the room that he would be staying in from now on. the only problem was that Chaotic was only staying in one room no matter what Heart said. he was staying in his and Luna's room. Heart could take all the rest but not that one. he even told the pony who tried to lead him off to Tell heart something if he didn't like it. "This is still my home and this is my room I have shared with my mate and child, I am not leaving the good memories in this room just because he wants me in some guest room. if he doesn't like it then he will know where I will be to come and talk about it."

Petal and Heart were left alone. Petal trusted Heart but was not sure about Chaotic. "Can we trust him? He was one of them. I was sure he would seek revenge for his family."

Heart wanted to laugh. "You are very smart Petal. I do not trust him, I just don't want him starting trouble. I am using him. I have him around and the ponies of Equestria fall in line. Most will at least. Some will still resist because they do not want to do good. Those who have evil in their hearts will resist but we must not let them stop us. As for Chaotic, well he is a danger and we should keep an eye on him. I fear that this may just be a ruse so that he can take back the throne. I would still rather him be here so that he doesn't stir up a rebellion."

"Why not stop him before he does anything?"

"He has been a friend to me and as much risk I am taking I don't want to harm him. He will not let me take his power. He will fight me and plus I don't know if I can return it to him. If I tried I fear that I would have to kill him. I would hate to kill a friend, even if they no longer consider me a friend."

Petal understood what Heart meant. "I will try to keep a watch on him. Maybe we can change his mind if he is trying to stop you."

Heart nodded. "Thank you. Tell Chaotic to meet me in throne room after he is done examining his room. We still need to attend to some matters."

**A/N: Ok so we got some info from Dominic. New character, new info and new dangers. All in one chapter. I hope you peeps enjoyed. 'Til next time. ~sci-fi. **


	18. Fitting the crimes

**A/N: Again making sure everyone knows that there is a poll on my profile. It is a way to have a little bit of input in the story.~ sci-fi**

Chapter 17: Fitting the crimes

Twilight Sparkle and Dominic Brightstone decided that the best place to look for information was in the castle of the two sisters. The rulers wanted to come along but after some convincing from the elements they stayed put. The elements of harmony and Dominic arrived at the castle of the two sisters and began to search. While looking through various books Twilight questioned Dominic. "I have read a few books on your species. They didn't offer much about you beside general information. There is practically nothing about you written down. Why is that?"

Dominic didn't mind talking while he searched. "Because we don't want other to know about us. We are very paranoid. I guess it comes from years of fighting."

Twilight flipped through the pages of the book she read. "What can you tell me about your kind?"

"Is there a particular area that you wish to know about? What do you know already?"

"I know that you are omnivores but I know that some omnivores prefer meat over plants. How about your kind?"

"Yes we prefer meat rather than fruits or vegetables. But our digestive system is very effective. We can digest most anything that has nutrition. Rotten food doesn't bother us much either. The stuff that would leave you ponies bed ridden for weeks, we might not even get a tummy ache. We can eat things that would kill others."

"Does your kind eat anything, even ponies?"

Dominic was wondering if she would ask that. "In my country ponies are rare. We realize that you are intelligent creatures that you have logic and culture. We know that we can sit down and have a conversation with you. But what we really care about that we know is that you are also easy prey. You have little natural defense. Pegasus are hard because they can fly but earth ponies and unicorns are eaten if they are seen."

Twilight did not freak out but was more curious. "Have you ever eaten a pony?"

"Yes. I have eaten many things. I have even had dragon."

Rainbow Dash had overheard the conversation. "That is messed up dude."

Dominic was not necessarily proud of his past. "I have done many things in my time. Most of them bring me shame. That is why I left my old life behind. I grew tired of the violence of my kind. We Slicans are a violent ignorant race. With every generation we lose pieces of our history. Warlords dressed as kings control my kind. We are doomed. I don't think that there is hope for my kind. There is however hope for yours. We must stop Heart so that your future isn't ruined." Everypony could agree with that.

Chaotic Love made it back to the throne room where Heart's Vision was waiting for him. Sun Petal was behind Chaotic after fetching him from his old room.

Petal had talked to Chaotic about staying in the room but didn't want to start a fight and waited for Heart to decide. "Heart, Chaotic wishes to stay in his old room."

Heart didn't care what room Chaotic stayed in. "I don't care where he stays. Let him stay there. I see no problem with it. We have more important things to do than fight over rooms. I see something that needs to be changed."

Petal wanted to know what she needed to do. "What is needed?"

"I need to correct our prison system."

"What do you need me to do?"

Heart would do the same thing he has been doing in secret. "You know how we treat criminals. Start processing every prison. Those who show no signs of change, show no mercy. For the petty criminals I want you to start programs to reform them. I don't want to need prisons. If ponies needed to be separated than they will no longer be part of this world."

Chaotic was slightly confused about what the plan was exactly. "So what, are you planning on just killing any that don't like you? any that don't fit your mold? you do realize all ponies are different and not all see the same rules the same way. so what you see as not hope for change they could see as keeping traditions and even a promise to some pony. while i a agree that murders and rapist deserve the death penalty like they had in my old world, i don't think others should just be killed like this. many ponies who have family members in the system could want revenge if you just kill the criminals as you see fit. i would do this slowly and start with the worst and then work your way down. otherwise if this is done overnight you will have a riot on your hooves for changing everything they know and believe in one day. most ponies don't like change, and the idea of killing doesn't sit well with many. so doing this big of a change at once will cause many to turn from you right off the bat. it will be seen as your first act as king is to kill, and that doesn't sound good or look good on you. i had the same problems when i told the ponies about the peace treaty with the changelings. it wasn't killing ponies but wasn't taken well for a while and i was seen as the bad guy until they realized that it actually was better for both kinds. so my advise would be move slowly rather than rush in with your guns blazing. patients works better then sprinting and expecting everypony to keep up."

Heart saw what Chaotic meant but did not care. "It seems that you don't get what I am doing, and what I have been doing. Did it ever wonder why crime rates dropped whenever I started a Lantern program in a city or town?"

chaotic sighed. "Yes I knew, but that was done in shadow not as a ruler."

" So you know we have been hunting down the criminals that the police can't find, or don't try to find. We either kill them or absorb them into our ranks. They change their ways or they die. Because of that we have saved many ponies either through offering them safety or protecting the ones that they would have harmed. This processing of ponies will not happen overnight but I want it to happen fast to show that I am not going to just talk. I will bring great change and the ponies better be ready, this is their head up. As to answer one of the other questions. I will not being killing ponies just because they don't do what I want. I only require that they try to be good and honorable. They don't have to work charity or donate. They just need to not harm other ponies and when the time comes help those in need. All need to try and be like the elements of harmony. That is my greater goal. To make every pony see the big picture. To stop looking out for themselves and start worrying about all ponies as a whole. The greedy and the self centered have no place in our future. So I will be rid of them through change or other extermination. I am starting with the criminals because they are the worst and keeping them incarcerated makes other ponies pay for there well being. You have reminded me of something. You had your little catch phrase with Luna. You will always be her angel with a shotgun. I want guns. I will find some ponies to create them but I need you to explain what they are building exactly."

Chaotic was surprised but only rose a brow to show it. "No. i have kept them out of this world every way I can because they cause nothing but pain and wars. it always comes down to one phrase, who has the bigger guns. and I will not let those kinds of weapons be used on or by ponies. this world is relatively peaceful, but add guns to it and it wont be for long. even if you only want it for you and your army. there will always be ones that will get the information on how to make them and then war and mutiny. so I am sorry but I will not bring or create or help create guns in this world."

Heart was getting tired of Chaotic's stubborn side. "You are not sorry, don't say it if you don't mean it. I will have guns. I know enough about them to understand the concept. Enough to go off of. Any pony who gets hurt while making them will be on your hooves." Petal was still waiting to make sure that Heart didn't have any other requirements. Heart had one more thing to add. "Petal I want you to publicly execute the prisoners. Make sure the ponies know what happens to the ones who do evil."

Petal nodded. "Your wish is my command."

Chaotic shook his head and had a thought he was glad heart couldn't hear. _'he is even worse than his brother._' then He gave a sigh. "fine i would rather have the limbs of a few workers on my mind then those of all the ponies you intend on killing with them, let alone all those who get their hooves on one and kill others. and how did you learn anything about them besides the name?"

Heart has always been curious. "Well I actually didn't learn with this intent. I was speaking to Nick one day about your world and we got around to the violence in it. He wasn't the best at explaining but I did learn that uses an explosion to launch a piece of metal. I don't know the specifics but I am sure through some trial an error I can figure out what to do. Maybe I will try a trip to your world. Learn first hoof what they are. Maybe I will bring back some humans to help me out. How does that sound to you? I am sure nothing bad will happen like endangering all of Equestria from a creature of darkness."

Chaotic face hoofed at Nick being involved. "figures. but good luck finding that world for your plan. i severed all ties to that world to this one. and even if you could make one, the odds of finding the world you are looking for in a million to one. so good luck with that, just dont get trapped in one where you cant come back. wouldn't end well i am guessing. and ya i might have caused that, but it wasn't intentional and because i didn't know my powers at the time. that's why anger and powerful ponies dont mix. so good luck making them but i am still not helping you with it. and before you ask or think about using me to find that world it wont work. my human side has also severed any ties with that world as well. i made sure that none would find their way to that world unless it was me under extreme circumstances. not even Nick can get back there. and guns are much more complicated than you think, so i know it will take you a while go get anything close to right. so this world can be peaceful for a short time longer."

Heart had no real intention of going to the human world. "I am not going to go world jumping. It would be stupid to go between dimensions. Especially for a vacation. I am not even sure if I want guns here. Melee and magic takes skill and training to use. I want advancement for use. It seems that your world is more advance than mine. I want that. I don't care if the technology is violent or not. I want us to advance, weather it be through technology, magic or natural evolution. You seemed to neglect that section of leadership. I admit that you personally gained us allies." Heart looked to Lachrymose.

She sneered. "I am no ally to you."

Heart wished the changeling would be more cooperative. "I don't have to be your enemy. I have done nothing to you and plan on nothing else."

"We feel everything the others do. I felt it when you were hurting my sibling. I felt every bit of fear. You have hurt me personally. You are no king. Chaotic was a king. you are nothing more than a traitor and a self centered tyrant."

Heart understood how changeling worked. "I am no tyrant. I will work for my ponies. I won't just be a tick on the skin of others like your species has. Don't sit there and act like you all are innocent. You have been stealing from ponies for all of your existence. Your entire race is based on sucking love out of others. You have taken the place of ponies and lied to there loved ones. Don't call me self centered."

"Enough! both of you." Chaotic walked up to the changeling and gave her a hug and whispered in her ear. "It will all be alright, I don't know how long it will tkae but things will be ok so please don't give him reason to hurt you. no matter how much you hate him." then he pulled his face away and looker her in the eyes. "Ok?" all she did was calm down and nod. "Good, thank you."

then Chaotic turned to Heart with an annoyed look. "If you were as smart as you say you are or did the research you said you did you would know that they had no choice on how they lived due to Tia's mistake. It was the only way they could survive and the ponies were always returned unharmed after a short time so ponies would not hunt them. so more are innocent then you are letting on. but, just like there are criminal ponies there were those changelings that went against those rules. but were treated as criminals just like ours are. you cant hold the actions of a few against an entire race. otherwise even yourself would be put to the gallows. besides that the feeding of a changeling never hurt, and can also help the ponies they feed off of. so they are better to work with than against and with working with them we have already increased the happiness of many ponies and increased productivity as well due to their ability to create a strong and natural building material. so you might be right that a few were not innocent, but do not forget all those that were."

Heart knew about the changelings. He chose those words for a reason. "I know that one bad apples ruins the bunch. I know that most are not the villains that rumor depicts them as. I wanted to put that bug in her place. She will not sit and mock me. She needs to understand that she is not only endangering herself, she is put her entire race at risk. I don't want to harm them but I won't let them stir up trouble either. You know them, don't let them harm themselves just because they don't like me."

Chaotic actually agreed with that idea and gave the message threw the hive mind for good measure. "Fine but you should know then that the same goes for ponies, and rulers as well. but enough of this. what else did you want to discuss?"

Chaotic was walking back to the castle from town. He wasn't far when he noticed a small crowd forming around a podium. Chaotic stopped to see watch the commotion was about. Four ponies stood on the podium. Three were bound. Iron hoof cuffs locked them to the stage. The other pony was a unicorn mare that stood pacing back and fourth. She spoke loud enough for every pony to hear her. "I stand by three ponies. They have all committed crimes against Equestria, crimes against you. She stepped back behind a stallion that in addition to his iron binds had a muzzle that rendered his speech. "This one has killed four different ponies. He was given life sentences for his crime. He is destined to live the rest of his life in prison. He will be kept in a prison with shelter, three meals a day and if needed medical attention. He would have been kept in good health until he died, at the cost of Equestrian citizens. You will pay for him to stay away. That is like a bribe isn't it? You are letting him control you. He will live without cost. All he has to do is sit on his flank all day long."

The mare continued. "Heart's Vision has deemed this wrong. Why should you have to pay to keep him away? As of news laws made by Heart's Vision, every pony is to be given a chance of freedom. We would not risk the safety of good ponies for the sake of saving money. This pony in particular was deemed unfit for reforming or freedom. There was the question of what to do with him. We can't let the good ponies keep paying for him can we? The answer is no. This pony does not belong in this world, so we will rid it of him."

The mare stopped speaking and levitated a blade from a sheathe on her side. She took the blade and slid it across the pony's neck. The crowd immediately gasped in shock. The ponies blood ran down the stage onto the ground. The ponies in front quickly backed up. The murderer's eyes frantically searched for anything as his life faded. The mare didn't seemed phased by this. She had a slight smirk on her face. The truth was that she enjoyed punishing the wicked. "This pony earned this fate for his evil deeds. Now let us move to a happier case."

The mare walk a few steps to her left. Another pony that was bond. She was not muzzled like the stallion but could not move. The bond mare was a pegasus and had her wings tied down as well. The unicorn mare stood behind the pegasus. "This mare has stolen from ponies. She takes what she wants and doesn't think of others. Her crimes do not call for such drastic action as the other. But she cannot get off scot free. We have a little plan for this." The mare signaled one of the guards that were watching in the corners to make sure nothing went wrong.

A guard brought a brand to the unicorn. The unicorn took the red hot brand and stuck it to the mare's chest. She yelled in pain. The air was quickly consumed by the smell of burning flesh and hair. The unicorn remained calm as she burned the mark on the pony. The pegasus knew better than to resist. After the unicorn was done a circle with three curved lines heading towards the center was left on the pony's chest. It was three inches in diameter. The unicorn turned to the crowd. "This pony will forever be known as a thief. This mark is what that means. This is the mark of a thief. She will never be able to hide from her past." The unicorn looked at the pegasus. "And if you take advantage of this freedom than you will find the same fate as no neck over there" The unicorn undid the cuffs and smacked the mare off the podium.

She stumbled as she hit the ground. She ducked her head as the crowd stared at her. They parted and she walked through. The crowd watched her like hawks. She made it through and picked up speed to get as far away as possible.

The unicorn gathered the crowds attention once more. "As for our final example we have a murderer once again. This one is different. He has renounced his ways. He regrets his crime and is willing to change. He will be marked but he will be set free. If he commits a crime it will have extreme consequences." The mare than proceeded to give the stallion his own mark. It was different than the thief's. The unicorn explained that dictionaries of marks would be released for public soon. She set the stallion free and scattered the crowd.

Chaotic watched this with both happy and horrified feelings. his human past made him agree with the killing of murders. he could even agree with branding the thief, and other murder as well. but what mad him sad and worried was the way it was done. those ponies were used as a spectacle. they were nothing more than a show of power. Heart was turning into nothing more than the first Hitler of this world. he was no where near that bad as of yet, but only the future could tell if he went all the way to that. even if Chaotic could agree with this action of how to treat the criminals, he couldn't agree with using them as examples to create fear over the others. but for now all chaotic could do was watch and wait. and hope that Twilight and Dominic would find the way to stop this.

Chaotic Walked into the throne room. "Why are you branding ponies Heart?"

Heart was looking over some plans that Petal had provided. He failed to divert his attention from the papers. "It is a guide and a reminder. Those who commit the crimes will have to live with it forever. Those who see the mark will know what that pony has done. I didn't want those who were locked up to walk without warning the innocents."

Chaotic thought he saw an opportunity to show Heart that he was being a hypocrite. "Than where is your mark? You admit to murdering your brother and others as well. Why do you get to get off for free?"

Heart was no hypocrite. He may be a lot of things but a hypocrite was not one of them. " Nothing. I will be receiving my mark later today. I have no right to force something upon others that I am not willing to bear myself. If you are done trying to make me look bad I would like to look over these plans for the education system. Changes must be made."

Chaotic never heard complaints on Equestria's education, unlike his world. "What about it has to be changed?"

"Well I wanted to add some Lantern recruitment as well has help teach some fundamentals. Teach them how to be good, progressive ponies. Speaking of Lanterns do you like the new additions?" Heart was speaking of the new medallion that the Lanterns wore. Every Lantern now wore a silver medallion around their neck. It was of a lantern, The only exception was the Beacons who wore gold medallions that looked like the sun.

Chaotic looked around the room. He already knew that almost every guard was a Lantern but it was absurdly obvious now that ever pony in the room besides Chaotic and Heart had either silver or gold on them. Chaotic saw it as another form of separation and show of authority. "I think that they are foolish. They just draw a line between your ponies and the rest." Chaotic did notice that he had only seen three ponies with the gold medallions but had seen plenty silver. " Why are their not more Beacons?"

Heart wished there was more. "I hoped for more by now but I don't want to rush things. To be a Beacon is to recognized as a leader. I am very careful in picking them."

Chaotic wanted to know as much as he could. He needed everything he could so that the restoration of order would be as smooth as possible. "You pick them? Do you do it for all of them? How many are there?"

Heart saw no harm in telling Chaotic even though he found it suspicious. "I do pick every Beacon. A current Beacon recommends a Lantern and then I personally evaluate them. So far there is only around forty Beacons. If you want to know more than you can ask Petal or another Beacon. I must decide what to do with the extra funding from abolishing the prisons."

"I will leave you to your duties, but I would suggest the hospitals and medical training and spells. not all are as good with them as you are. so it might help you look better and more caring." Then he started to leave the room waiting to see it heart would take his advice, or want to hear more.

Heart paid little attention to Chaotic but thought he had a good idea. "Good idea. I shall do just that. I was always upset that the doctors knew very little healing magic." Heart was not concerned with his image he liked the idea of saving more ponies.

Chaotic left Heart's presence.


	19. Giving in

Chapter 18: Giving in.

Heart's Vision listened as Sun Petal talked to Lachrymose. "Would you like to go somewhere? You have been in the castle for a long time. If you want we can go out and actually do something. You must want to get out of here. What do you say?"

Lachrymose looked at Heart. "Are you sure that he will allow it?"

Petal looked to Heart. "You don't mind do you?"

Heart didn't want the changeling to be miserable. "She can do anything within the city. As long as she doesn't try to escape there will be no problems."

Petal tried to make the changeling see Heart's kind side. "He isn't as bad as you think. He wants the best for all. How about we spend the day together? Just us two having fun."

Lachrymose still didn't like Heart but she did want to leave this castle. "I would like that." 

Petal left with Lachrymose. Heart didn't have anything to do today so he decided to spend some time with Scootaloo. He told one of his guards of where he would be incase of an emergency.

Heart looked in his room for Scootaloo but didn't find her. She hadn't told him she was doing anything today. He closed the door. "Wonder where she is?" Heart got a surprised when he was tackled to the ground.

He was started at first but calmed down when he heard the giggling. Heart now could see his orange attacker. She stopped giggling long enough to speak. "What are you doing looking through our room at this time of day?"

Heart smiled. "Looking for you! Why else would I? Can I get up now?"

Scootaloo moved around but not to free Heart but to sit more comfortably on him. "No, I like you better down there. You would make an excellent rug." Looking down Scootaloo had a ideal view of Heart's chest. Directly above where his fur made a heart was a burn mark. It was the symbol for a murderer. Scootaloo hated seeing it. She lost her happy mood, it turned to sorrow. She rubbed the mark with her hoof. "Why did you do this? I hate looking at it."

Heart didn't like it either but he had to. "It needed to be done Scoot. What kind of king would I be if I put something on other ponies that I would not myself bear? I will not be a hypocrite. If I expect others to do something than I must as well. I know you don't like it but I did commit the crime so I have to have it. I'm sorry."

Scootaloo wanted it gone. "You have to know some kind of spell that can heal you. Just do that."

"No. I know magic that can get rid of burns but I won't. I must wear this. Not only is against the law for me to remove it, I couldn't bring myself to. I have to live with what I have done. Don't be so down. A little mark shouldn't bother you."

Scootaloo thought it was ugly but that wasn't why she hated. "A little mark on you does bother me. It isn't just that it is ugly, it, it reminds me of what you have done. I don't want to remember that. I want to see you for who you are. A strong and loving pony. I don't want to think of you murdering your brother every time I see you. I want to think of all our happy memories. I want to remember how you were there for me when my parents weren't. I want to remember when we first moved in together. I want to remember you helping through school. I want to remember you giving me the courage to put on my first stunt show. I want to remember you cheering me on, being there to pick me up when life knocked me down. Why can't you have a mark that represents all the happiness you have created? Why does it have to be the one mistake you made?" Scootaloo looked like she might cry.

Heart hated seeing her sad. He forced himself up and hugged Scootaloo. "It has to be there. You can still remember me for those things but this mark lets every other pony that I sinned. I did the crime so I must pay. No matter how much good I do or have done it doesn't change the past. I can choose to walk a different path but even as I move forward all it takes if for me to look back and I will see where I once tread. All this mark does is show other ponies what I have done. At the same time my past does not make me who I am. It alters me but I can choose how it affects me. The same goes for you. You choose what you want to see."

"I choose my Heart, the one who loves me and will make me happy. Can you at least make it less visible?"

Heart couldn't alter the mark itself but he thought of something to make Scootaloo happy. "I will cast a spell on you that will make it hard to see for you. You will still be able to see it if you try but just glancing at me you won't see it. How does that sound?"

"Please do."

"Ok." Heart performed the spell. It was quick and Scootaloo didn't feel a thing. "There you go."

Scootaloo looked at where the mark was and she could still see it. It blended in with Heart's fur more she could still see it. "I don't think it worked. It is still there."

Heart thought this would happen. "You are looking for it. The spell is very weak. Just don't think about it and it will disappear. How about we go out today? I don't have anything to do and I haven't spent quality time with you in a long time."

Scootaloo liked that idea. "That sounds nice. What do you have in mind?"

Heart didn't care what. "Not sure. Let's start with food. We can brainstorm while we eat."

"I am kind of hungry. What you want to eat?"

"I have been eating the castle chef's food for too long now. How about some fast food? A hay burger sounds really good about now."

Scootaloo was hoping that Heart wouldn't want to eat in the castle. "Let's do that."

Scootaloo and Heart went to a fast food restaurant. As they entered ponies stared at Heart. Some of them bowed out of respect but most just watched him. Scootaloo thought it was weird and was not expecting this response. Heart knew that the ponies watched him but he didn't care. He walked up to the counter and ordered his meal. The pony behind the register didn't know what to say. She put the order in but said nothing. He turned to Scootaloo. "What do you want Scoot?"

Scootaloo didn't see how Heart wasn't responding to this. "Do you not see these ponies?"

"I do. What do you want me to do about it? They are doing nothing wrong."

"I know but it makes me feel awkward."

Heart addressed all the ponies in the room. "Please go about your regular business. I kindly request that you not stare." The ponies turned around with haste. They did not know their leader yet and didn't know how to react to him.

Scootaloo saw all of the ponies turn but didn't really feel any better. She tried to forget about it and looked at the pony behind the counter. "I'll have number three combo."

The register pony nodded, she kept looking at Scootaloo trying to avoid Heart. She told how much it would be. Heart paid and they sat down, waiting for their food to be ready.

Scootaloo talked low. "I don't want to eat here."

Heart didn't understand. "Why?"

Scootaloo looked around. "Can we go somewhere more secluded?"

Heart caught on. "Ok. There is a park near by. We can eat there."

"Thank you."

Heart went back to the counter and changed the meal to go. The food was soon ready, Heart teleported with Scootaloo to the park. There were no ponies around them. "You will need to get use to that. Ponies will always act like that."

"I don't want to talk about it. Let's just eat ok?"

"Whatever you want."

Heart and Scootaloo talked while they ate. Scootaloo brought up a previous conversation that Heart wished was left alone. "Are you still having the nightmares?"

Heart wouldn't lie. "Yes."

"How often?"

"Scootaloo, you know. I wake up to you staring at me every morning. There is nothing I can do about them. Without Luna to prevent them I will keep having them."

"Why are you having them in the first place? You never had them before."

"Luna said that I have always had them. I just never saw them because she got rid of them while she was around. That is why I never had dreams."

Scootaloo got to the point that she wanted to from the beginning. "What are they about?"

Heart didn't fall for it. "I don't want to tell you about them Scoot. Just let it be."

"No! I have the right to know. Anything that affects you affects me. Why won't you tell me?"

Heart had heard this too many times before. "Fine, I will tell you. They aren't the same but most the time you are involved. I see you leaving me or you dieing. It is usually because I failed somehow. I have been beginning my days with me failing you. You happy?"

Scootaloo has never seen Heart as a failure. "Don't be like that Heart. You never fail me. You do nothing but make me happy. They are just dreams and they don't mean anything. Now come over here so I can cuddle with you."

Heart didn't feel any better about his dreams but did as Scootaloo asked. They laid on the grass with the warm sun heating their fur. They could feel each other's heart beat. Heart just enjoyed laying with Scootaloo.

"Sweetie Belle has a concert coming up. Do you want to go with me?"

Heart knew about it. "Yeah I can go. I'll make time. She has a beautiful voice. It is surprising that she didn't find her talent for singing sooner than she did."

"She was always trying to be like Rarity. She couldn't see past that. We tried to so many different things when we were crusaders but whenever we did a play she always wanted to do costumes or write the scripts. It is funny looking back. She was so close to finding her talent yet it took so long."

Heart did think the irony was funny. "How about you? You always road around on that little scooter but never realized that you had a nack for performing stunts."

"I'm sorry. I was too distracted trying to get the attention of a cute little colt."

Heart smiled. "Well shit, it seems all you got was me. Maybe you should have tried harder."

Scootaloo wanted to win. "I know, what a crappy turnout. The other one had way more muscles."

"Awww that hurts." Heart made a pouty face.

Scootaloo rolled her eyes. "You know I was kidding. I wouldn't trade you for anything."

"What if some pony offered you a really tasty apple? I think you would take that deal."

Scootaloo was amazed by how silly Heart could be. "No, I wouldn't trade you for a tasty apple. That is a tempting offer though. Maybe if they had two."

"Yeah but who would trade two apples for me?"

"Yeah, it would be a really bad deal. I would feel bad for the pony who made it."

Heart chuckled. "You're an ass."

Scootaloo giggled. "You started it."

"That is true but you escalated it. It is all those dramas you are reading."

"I am not reading that many! I read a few. That's it."

Heart knew better than that. "So how many have you read this week?"

"I have only read four."

"Scoot, it is Tuesday. You have read four books in three days. I think the library is going to run out of those dramas soon. What will you read after that?"

"I don't know. Maybe I will ask a nerd. They know all the good books." Scootaloo took a pause. "Hey Heart what books do you recommend?"

"Ha ha, very funny. I guess it doesn't matter what you read. So what are you currently reading?"

"Foal development." Scootaloo told the truth.

Heart let out a huff. "We talked about this."

"I know but I really want it. We are married and have a stable home, please Heart. I want this so badly."

"Are you sure? Do you think we are ready?"

Scootaloo didn't hesitate. "Yes I am."

Heart sighed. "You are so stubborn. Once you get something in your mind you won't let it go." Scootaloo was about to defend herself but Heart put his hoof up. "But I don't believe that you are wrong."

Scootaloo lit up. "Are you saying…?"

Heart was happy with the reaction. "Yes Scoot. We can have a child. I won't hold you back from what you want. I only wish for your happiness."

"Thank you Heart! I know you are scared but I know you will be a great father."

Heart didn't agree with that. "I don't know about that but I am sure you can make up for my short comings."

"Don't be so negative. You will do great. I asked before but I want to know if you changed your mind. Would you want a filly or colt?"

Heart hadn't really thought about it. Heart rubbed Scootaloo's wings as he thought. "I am not sure. Maybe a filly. What about you?"

Scootaloo had thought about it. "Well I would want a colt because I want him to look like you. I would want a filly but I think that you will spoil her."

"I would not."

Scootaloo raised an eyebrow. "Really? You really think that you wouldn't? You would give our girl everything under the sun if you could."

"What evidence do you have?"

"Me! As well as the fact that you compete with Rarity when it comes to giving."

Heart saw his defeat. "Not sure about the Rarity thing but I have spoiled you rotten."

"It isn't my fault that I know how to pull your strings."

"You do not."

The mare had recent proof. "So you woke up this morning wanting a foal?"

"No." Heart saw her point after he spoke. "You cunning little puppeteer."

Scootaloo grinned. "You aren't so hard. I usually can just make some puppy dog eyes and you will fold."

"I guess that means you are my one weakness."

"I don't blame you. I am pretty amazing."

Heart rolled his eyes. "That is not fair. You are feeding your ego but I can't even say anything because it is true."

Scootaloo saw what Heart was doing. "Some pony is trying to butter me up for something."

Heart and Scootaloo talked some more before leaving the park. It was noon when they decided to do something that Heart had never done, hang glide. They had gotten the equipment and Scootaloo and Heart stood on a cliff. Heart looked down. "How the hell did you convince me to do this? This is stupid!"

Scootaloo knew Heart was afraid of heights. "It will be fun. When I was a crusader I did this."

Heart squinted his eyes. "You have wings."

"It was before I could fly! Now stop being a big baby and jump. Just hold onto the glider and you will be fine. If bad goes to worse you can always teleport."

"I am not being a baby. I am legitimately concerned for safety." He turned towards the cliff. He backed up with his hind legs as his forelegs curled around the glider's handles. He ran forward a little and off the cliff. He dropped a little before the glider started to ride the air. After that it leveled out and Heart moved smoothly through the air. He was frightened at first but it past as he got further out.

Scootaloo came up beside him. "See it isn't that bad. All you needed to do was trust me."

It wasn't a matter of trust for Heart. "It wasn't that I didn't trust you. It was that I didn't trust gravity." Heart could see why Scootaloo wanted to do this. This was the only way that they could fly together. "Sometimes I wish I was a pegasus."

Scootaloo looked at Heart waiting for him to elaborate.

"I know you want me to be able to fly with you. I wish I could sometimes. The only way we can even get close is doing stuff like this. I feel like I hold you back." Heart eyed the ground far below, breaking eye contact with his partner.

Scootaloo didn't see it like Heart did. She position herself directly underneath Heart. He was forced to look at Scootaloo. "You don't hold me back. Stop beating yourself up over nothing. I don't need you to be a pegasus. I need a pony that loves me, that pushes me to be all I can be, that tells me that I am taking on more than I can. A pony that is always there for me no matter what is going on. You are exactly what I need. Now stop your moping and enjoy this with me."

Heart cheered up. "I can do that."

"Good" Scootaloo did a barrel role away from Heart.

Heart focused on this uncommon experience. He felt the air blow past his fur. They were far enough away from Canterlot that green cover the ground below them. _'I can see why Scoot likes this so much. There is so much freedom up here. It seems like nothing can touch me.' _Heart looked over at Scoot who was doing little stunts. _'I always did wonder why she flew so much when she finally learned how. At any moment she could just escape from any troubles that she had. I'm happy that she doesn't have to do that anymore. I will make a world that no pony will ever have to do that. I just need some time. Then every pony will see how life should be.' _


	20. Three enter one leaves

**A/N: Gore warning. The end of this chapter contains graphic descriptions that some may find unpleasant. The weak stomached should not read. It starts approximately two thirds the way down. So the bottom third of the chapter is the gore section. Don't tell me I didn't warn you if you find it overwhelming.~ sci-fi **

Chapter 19: three enter one leaves.

A few weeks past and Heart's Vision was in his usual place, sitting on his throne. Chaotic Love was on his left. To his right was Sun Petal, on Petal's right was Lachrymose. Petal and Lachrymose were whispering to each other. Heart couldn't hear. He looked at Chaotic who was smiling. Heart knew that Chaotic had a connection with the changelings. Heart wanted to get to the bottom of this.

Heart looked at Petal. "Petal, There isn't much to do today so how about you take the day off."

Petal was surprised. "Are you sure sir? There is nothing you want me to do?"

"No. Anything that pops up Lightning can take care of."

Petal smiled. "Thank you." She turned to Lachrymose. "You want to come with me? We can go to that place I was talking about."

Lachrymose smiled but Heart saw something that was a little different than usual. Lachrymose's smile seemed slightly more mischievous. "I would love to."

The two walked out of the room, as the door shut behind them Heart counted in his head. Heart then stood up and told his guards that he would be right back. He walked down the castle's hallways. He stopped in front of Sun Petal's room. He put his ear to the door and heard giggling. He opened the door slowly. He peeked inside and saw Lachrymose nibbling on Petal's neck.

Heart smirked. He closed the door quietly. _'Just as I thought. Good job Petal.'_ Heart went back to his duties. On his way back he saw a guard running down the hallway towards him.

The guard bowed and then spoke. "My king, Lightning Hoof is in the throne room with a matter that needs your attention."

Heart thanked the guard for his haste and teleported to the throne room. He was surprised when he saw Lightning Hoof pushing and earth pony to the floor. The earth pony was bloody and bruised. Lightning saw the flash from Heart's magic and looked up. "Good to see you Heart."

Heart nodded. "You too. What is this about?"

Lightning looked down on the pony that was being forced to taste the floor. "This idiot has been seen vandalizing Lantern posters, harassing Lantern recruitment stations and, this tops it off right, she has now been caught planning a attack on the castle."

Heart knew this day would come. "How did you find this out?"

"Our changeling friends gave use the info. I brought this one here because she is the ring leader of the thing. I thought that you would want to deal with her personally."

Heart examined the earth pony. Heart could tell that Lightning had made sure that she wasn't going to resist. "I have some questions for this mare." Lightning reeled back a little but still had his hoof on her back. Heart looked the pony in the eye. "Why have you been causing trouble and planning to do such hostile actions towards your king?"

The pony was weak and had trouble even looking at Heart. "You are not my king. My loyalties lye with the true rulers. I will stop your false rule."

"Why do you fight, or rather, plan to fight for the old rulers?"

"Because they are the rightful kings and queens."

"What gives them the right? You think that Discord has the right to guide you? We saw what happened when he escaped his stone prison. He terrorized Equestria. Or how about Luna. The sister who took the form of Nightmare Moon and betrayed her sister because she didn't get the attention she wanted."

Chaotic defended his love. "Don't speak of Luna that way. She didn't kill her sibling, unlike you."

Heart turned his focus to Chaotic. "That is because she lost. I didn't act out of jealousy. I removed a parasite that was draining my life away."

"Luna would never kill Celestia!"

Heart didn't want to argue with Chaotic. "I don't care to argue." Heart looked back to the mare. "What do you say? Do either of them deserve to lead"

The mare trusted her old rulers. "Celestia trusts both of them and that is enough for me."

"And what of Celestia? Why does she deserve it? She will not protect you. She has endangered her ponies on multiple occasions. She could not save you when discord escaped the first time. She could not protect you from the changelings. She didn't even try to stop Nightmare Moon! She doesn't care about you! We were all just toys for her to play with when she got bored. Name a time that she saved Equestria."

"She saved it from Discord with the help of Luna, as well as the elements of harmony."

"So your example is Discord? The creature who you are trying to put back in charge. You are as stupid as naïve."

The mare was angry. Her cheeks flared. "You are the villain! You betrayed every pony that trusted you! You are trash!"

Lightning didn't take kindly to her words. He moved his hoof to her head with extreme speed and slammed her head into the floor. He held her there. "Before you decide on her punishment I want you to know that the plan to get to you was to kidnap Scootaloo."

This made it personal to Heart. Heart grabbed the mare with his magic. She floated in the air dazed from Lightning's hit. Heart looked her in the eyes, their muzzles were touching. "Attacking me is one thing, but attacking my loved ones. That is a whole other story. I was going to make your death quick but you don't deserve it." Heart looked to Lightning. "Put her in the dungeon. I will deal with her later. Make sure you put down some plastic. I don't want to punish the cleaners. Also make sure to put her collaborators in there as well. " Heart looked at the mare. He grew a wicked smile. "Death will come slow to you."

Chaotic watched unable to do anything to help this pony. It saddened him as Lightning dragged her away. The doors slammed behind Lightning. Chaotic looked to Heart. "What kind of example are you setting? What is there to gain from torturing that mare?"

Heart didn't have a greater purpose and didn't lie. "My own pleasure."

"That is wrong Heart. What would Scootaloo think of this?"

Heart not in the best mood to start with and Chaotic questioning wasn't helping. "What does Luna think of what you are doing? Have you even talked to her since you have been here? I am wondering on your motives. Are you truly seeing if I will be a better leader or are you trying to stop me? Because you have either betrayed the ones you loved or are lieing to my face. Either way you are doing something wrong to accomplish something that you think is for the better. This pony needs to feel her mistake. Maybe her ignorance will depart with her soul."

Chaotic could see this was a dead end argument and dropped. "I do not support this action but it seems your mind is set on cruelty." Chaotic stayed quiet but he would not let that mare suffer.

Lightning returned shortly and sat to the right of Heart. He looked around. "Where is Petal, or that changeling for that matter?"

Heart had enough time to calm down. He could enjoy the irony in the situation. "How many mares have you asked out this month?"

Lightning was taken off guard but answered his king. "Let me think. There was the one at the grocer, the librarian." Lightning mumbled to himself a little more before coming up with a total. "Seven. I think that is right."

"How many turned you down?"

Lightning frowned. "All but one."

"Have you been on the date yet?"

"Yes."

"What happened?"

Lightning didn't see where this was going. "We ate dinner, talked some."

Heart knew Lightning better than that. "So did you strike out?"

It came full circle for Lightning. He gritted his teeth as he answered. "Yes." Heart laughed, Lightning was confused by this. Heart didn't usually bother with his relationships. "What has got you cracked up?"

Heart stopped just long enough to answer. "Because you always talk about it but it seems that Petal gets more than you!"

Lightning looked at where the changeling usually sat. "Wait… Lachrymose, and Petal?

"Yeah!"

"Damn it! Even the bug gets more action than me." A guard snickered at Lightning. He didn't bother to correct the guard. "How long has this been happening?"

"Now that, I do not know. I just found it out before you came. That is why Petal isn't here right now."

"So I am filling for Petal while she is out having fun? She owes me for this. She better hook me up with one of her friends."

"that is something that you will have to bring up with her yourself."

"Oh, I will!"

They sat in the throne room for an hour before Petal and Lachrymose came back. They looked as if nothing had occurred while they were gone. Lightning gave Petal the stink eye. She didn't know why and asked him. Lightning didn't know how the changeling would act so he whispered in Petal's ear when she was close enough. After they were done. Petal looked over at Heart. Heart had been paying attention. He did not know what exact words were said but he was sure what Lightning told her. Petal looked at Heart waiting to see how he would react.

She did not know if he would approve. Heart gave her a look of neutrality. He spoke calmly afraid that if he joked she might take it seriously. "We will talk about it later. I am not upset."

Petal remained silent but let out the breathe she had been holding in.

There was an odd silence that filled the room. It was a slow day for Heart. Due to the lack of activity Heart noticed when Lachrymose stiffened up. Heart looked over with curiosity. Lachrymose rushed over to Petal and whispered into her ear. Petal was not expecting to hear what she did. A frown was placed upon her face. Lachrymose finished what she was saying and backed of staring at Petal with worry. Petal seemed to debate in her head what to do.

Petal turned to the pony that she thought she could always trust. "Heart, there is a changeling in danger in the city. I want to go help."

Heart managed to surprise even his followers sometimes. "Let us go there with haste. No point in standing around."

Heart asked Lachrymose where the changeling was. After receiving the information he teleported there along with Chaotic. They found four ponies in an alley cornering a changeling. Chaotic wanted to jump in and help but he needed to see how Heart would handle this.

The changeling cowered up against a wall.

The group of ponies was mixed. There were two pegasus and it seemed that they had already stopped one escape attempt since one of the changelings wings was damaged. One of the stallions spoke to the changeling. "Just like a roach, running into the darkest place in hopes of hiding. Nothing but an insect to crushed under my horseshoe."

Heart cleared his throat. "What do you all think you are doing?"

The ponies turned around to face the pair. "We were going to zap a pesky mosquito." he noticed Chaotic. "I see you have the bug lover on your side."

Heart didn't like these ponies. "This changeling is under my protection and if you harm it than I am going to punish you and it will be ten times worse than whatever damage you do to the changeling."

"Why do you defend this parasite! It is a monster that needs to die!"

"Is that your final word?"

"Yeah, it is! Come at me buddy. I won't be put down by some fancy fucking unicorn!"

"So be it." Before any of the ponies could do anything heart put up a shield around the group. What was odd was that the shield had two holes on the top, they were too small to escape out of. The ponies didn't have much time to examine it before Heart uttered the last words they would hear. "You lose." As he finished his sentence a flash happened in the shield. Chaotic and Lachrymose were blinded temporarily as Heart created a fierce fire within the group. The reaction had to be fed and Heart forced oxygen in through the holes. The ponies screamed as the fire burned them. It was so intense that their screams were only heard as background to the roar of the flames. The screams stopped but Heart kept the flame alive. It took five minutes before the whole event to be over. Heart killed the flame by sealing the shield and suffocating the flame.

It died and ashes lay in the shield. Heart lifted the changeling up and over to where he was. It remembered how Heart treated it's sibling and was just as afraid as before. Heart put on a kind face. "Hey, hey, it is ok. I will not harm you. I wouldn't have gone through this even I wanted to. Let me fix that." Heart healed the changeling's wing. The changeling felt better without the pain.

It looked at the ashes of it's attackers, then back to Heart. "Thank you."

Heart smiled. "I protect my own. You are part of Equestria and will be protected just like any pony. You can go."

The changeling nodded and left. Heart saw the flash of green as it hid transformed. Chaotic thought that Heart handled this well with the exception of killing the ponies. Chaotic felt the fear and saw when Heart hurt the changeling during his takeover. He wondered why he was acting so differently now. "Heart, why save this changeling but hurt and strike fear in the others? Is it because of Petal?"

Heart wished he hadn't had to treat the other changeling the way he did. "No, I did this because it needed to be done. I hurt the changeling because it needed to be done. If I hadn't than the changelings would have caused trouble. I need them to be on my side. I don't want to be know as the pony who killed an entire race."

Chaotic had a mix of emotions. He could see that Heart still was trying to do good. His methods were wrong but his intent was good. He wondered how long a normal pony would have lasted with such hateful spirits. He also thought about how far along Twilight was with being able to remove the windegoes from Heart.

Rainbow threw a book across the room. "Why isn't there anything in here! How are we suppose to stop that traitor if we can't find that stupid spell!?"

Twilight corrected Rainbow. "Don't throw books Rainbow. I understand that you are upset but that won't get us anywhere."

It seemed that Rainbow wasn't the only pony frustrated by the situation. Applejack sighed. "It has been weeks Twilight. I don't think there's anything in here."

Twilight didn't want to give up. "What do you want to do? You want Heart to keep ruling?"

"I ain't saying that sugarcube. I just don't think we will find anything here. We do have other options."

Twilight didn't want to risk the lives of any pony. "No we can't use the tree. There is no telling what Heart will do. We have to find something that rid Heart of the windegoes."

Rainbow butted in. "We have to stop him. We can't wait around to find some ancient how to book. We need to stop him one way or another."

Twilight looked like she was on the verge of tears. "How can you say that?"

Rainbow raised her voice. "Because he betrayed us and every other pony! He doesn't deserve anything he has."

"He is a good pony. How many times have you heard of him helping a pony for no reason? How many times has he personally helped you. He has done so much good. I saw him grow up from a little colt. He wanted nothing but to help. The only reason he is doing these wrong things is because of the windegoes. Should he be punished for what he was born with? For something he can't control."

"Why are you defending him!?"

"Because it is my fault! I shouldn't have set him up to be an adviser. I should have waited until he was older. If I had than Dominic might have found us and we could have corrected it before all of this. I am to blame for all this." Twilight lost herself. She stared at the floor lost in self-loathing.

Rainbow slide next to the upset pony. "Hey don't be like this. We already told you that it isn't your fault. Don't worry about it. We will do it your way and find a way to help Heart. It is late and we can try again tomorrow. Let's go home. That sound good to you?"

Twilight nodded. The group left the castle. None knew how to solve this. Dominic hated seeing this. He had moved to Equestria so that he wouldn't be surrounded by such sadness and hate. Instead it seemed that he had brought it with him. They walked through the Everfree forest. None of them said a word. Dominic looked further down the path. "There is a zebra on the path."

Twilight couldn't believe that she had forgotten. "Zecora, she can probably help us! Hurry up everypony!" Twilight ran down the road with excitement. She hoped for a answer to her problems. She was followed by her friends.

Zecora was going to pick some herbs for potions when she saw Twilight running for her. "Hello Twilight. Is there something you need?"

"Have you heard the news about Heart?"

Zecora had heard about it on one of her trips to Ponyville. "Yes I have and I am sorry."

"We need your help. Do you know anything about some ancient ritual to capture windego spirits?"

Zecora kenw many types of magic. "I do but why would you need such a thing? I thought that you would be trying to stop Heart."

"We are but we need to know the ritual to do it. Dominic can explain it to you."

Zecora looked the ponies over once more. "Where is this pony you speak of?"

Dominic was no where to be seen. Twilight was confused. "He was just here." Twilight cought Zecora's words and corrected her. "He isn't a pony. He is a Slican."

Zecora eyes went wide. "What!?" Zecora scanned her surroundings trying to locate the creature. "Why would you bring one of them to me?"

Twilight didn't understand Zecora's reaction. "Why wouldn't we bring him to you? He needs to explain what we are looking for. Why are you freaking out?"

Dominic revealed himself from the darkness of the Everfree. "I mean no harm zebra. I am not like my kind. There is no reason for your fear."

Zecora's eyes locked onto Dominic. She took a fighting stance. Twilight looked to Dominic for answers. "What is going on?"

Dominic had his eyes trained on Zecora as he answered Twilight. "You don't see many of my kind Twilight. You have no reason to fear me. Zebras on the other claw have seen many of us. I am particularly surprised at this zebra. She did not run, smart. She probably knows that I can run faster than her. I hid because I feared that she would run if she saw me coming. Zecora is it? Don't be afraid. I am not like my kind. I have lived in Equestria for a long time. I have seen you before. I wondered what your name was."

Zecora didn't drop her guard. "How have you seen me before."

"I live in the Everfree same as you. You have a hut not too far from here. If I wanted to eat you than I would have a long time ago. I had a prime opportunity a few months ago. You were picking some red orchids. I do not know what for but you were too close to my home for comfort. I think you sensed it too. You kept looking over your shoulder."

Zecora picked too many herbs and flowers to remember one particular incident months ago. She lowered her guard not because she believed him but because she knew enough about Slicans to know that they were not big on conversation. "I do not remember. I don't think you are like most your kind. Twilight wouldn't know you as a friend if you were. You explain what you need and why and I may be able to help. Let's go to my home. The Everfree is not somewhere a pony wants to be at night." Zecora brought them to her hut and Dominic explained what was going on.

Back in Canterlot Chaotic walked through the halls. It wouldn't be long until the sun set. In front of him was two guards. They took a turn around a corner. The two headed towards the dungeon, where Chaotic was planning to go. To keep suspicion down chaotic continued to walk down the hall acting like he wasn't going to the dungeons. He heard the thick metal door slam. Chaotic doubled back and peeked around the corner. No pony in sight. He rushed to the door. He could hear ponies talking on the other side. He used a spell to see through the door. Chaotic was surprised. The dungeon hall was lined with guards. He counted fourteen. He couldn't just go in there. He wanted to save the rebel pony, in the very least make sure she didn't suffer. Chaotic began to think of a way past the guards. Two voices echoed down the hall the way Chaotic came from. He acted quick, flying to the ceiling.

Chaotic watched as Heart and Petal came around the corner, headed towards the dungeon.

Petal watched Heart as she walked. "So you don't have a problem with me being with a changeling?"

"Why would I?"

Petal voice lowered with her confidence. "Just the way you talk to her…"

Petal was going to continue but Heart cut her off. "I only said those things to send a message. I have no problem with changelings. Even if I did I have no right to tell you who to love or not to love. That is a choice that you make. As long as you are happy and Lachrymose treats you well it doesn't matter."

"Thank you."

Heart smiled. "There is no need to thank me. As long as you don't hurt anypony than it doesn't matter how you live your life."

Petal was still happy that Heart supported her. "I still appreciate it. Your opinion means a lot to me. How did you find out about it?"

"I followed you to your room. Don't worry I didn't see anything."

"Oh… I should have locked the door."

"Yeah." Heart reached the door to the dungeon. "I will protect her and her kind. I can not guarantee there safety if any stand against me but as long as her kind stay in line and no harm will come to them. Now I want to know where this rebel is."

Petal hoped nothing bad happened to Lachrymose. "I understand. The bitch is the second room to the right. Your requests are waiting for you in there as well."

Heart thanked Petal and walked through the door. Petal went back the way she came. Neither of them saw Chaotic hovering near the ceiling. He said nothing but his thoughts were not as well contained. _'DAMN IT! How am I going to help her now?" _Chaotic saw two options. He could go free the rebel and get caught, permanently ruining his spying or he could let the mare suffer. He lowered himself to the floor. Both rage and sorrow burned inside him as he walked away from the dungeon, leaving the mare to a painful and unfair death.

Heart was saluted as he walked down the hall. He entered the room that the mare was being held in. Plastic lined the stone floors as Heart requested. The room had a chill to it. A cart with the tools Heart requested sat in the corner. The mare was bound to the floor by iron cuffs bolted to it. She stood up right. To prevent and sort of attack a brace was firmly secured to her neck. The brace was close to the wall and the mare was as well. She saw Heart enter the room from the corner of her eye. She had no muzzle and spoke freely. "Let me and my friends go you traitor!"

Heart looked at the opposite side of the room. Two ponies were bound, they had muzzles but did not have neck braces. Two of the other collaborators. The mare was positioned to see them clearly. "Oh it is too late for that. It is now the time for punishment. You brought this on yourself. Now your punishment will mimic your future crime." Heart walked next to the earth pony mare. "I will use one of my favorite spells. I don't use it for this purpose often. I did use it on one of my classmates once. I think you will enjoy it as much as she did." Heart cast the spell on the mare.

She felt funny at first. She felt a tingling all over her body. It stopped quickly but after a pressure was left. The mare didn't understand what was happening.

Heart explained. "Enhancing your perception is such a useful ability. Now you will experience everything so much more vividly. If you are wondering what that feeling over your body is, it is air. Something that most of us don't even realize is there unless we think about it. You can feel the pressure of the air. It is great isn't it? Great for me. Horrible for your future. You will find that out later." Heart walked a few meters to the other mare that was a rebel just like the earth pony, however she was a pegasus. She squirmed. Heart pulled over his tools. He looked them over. They shined even in the low light of the dungeon. He picked a small but extremely sharp blade.

He levitated the blade to the pegasus' eye. "Let's start here." The pegasus' eye shook in fear. It didn't last long before Heart shoved the blade into it. A muffled scream echoed into the earth pony mare's ears. The volume wasn't the issue to the earth pony. The pegasus was a old friend of the earth pony. She had known her for most of her life.

"You asshole!"

Heart only grinned. He put the blade back. The pegasus had her eye closed and continued to moan in pain. Blood ran down her face, the earth pony could smell it. Heart used magic to grasp the pegasus wings. "Let's demote you." Heart ripped the pony's wings off. To keep her from bleeding out he cauterized the wound.

The earth pony could smell the burning flesh. It overwhelmed her. She gagged a few time before throwing up. "What the fuck is wrong with you! She wasn't responsible for this. It was me. Why are you punishing her!?"

Heart looked at the wingless pegasus. "You must care about her. She is one of the ponies that would have carried out your plans. As you would have used my loved ones against me, I use your's. Let's continued." The pegasus shook her head ferociously begging for it to stop. Heart looked her in the face. Half was soaked with blood. "No? Why not? Do you think you deserve better? Would you let Scootaloo go if she asked? This is what you get! You even think of hurting any pony I care about and you will pay!" Heart stuck a larger blade into the mare's shoulder.

It was followed by another muffled scream. This time the pegasus fell to the floor unable to stand with the injury. Heart spoke to her. "Stand up." She didn't comply. "I said stand!" Heart forced her onto her hooves. "If you fall on the floor again I will kill you." Heart was almost done with her. He looked to her flank, her cutie mark. "You may sit after this final punishment, ok?"

The mare cried from her good eye. She had a weak nod. Her leg wanted to buckle but she wouldn't let it. Heart focused on her cutie marks. A intense heat formed behind her. Heart used flames to burn her cutie mark away. She screamed through the entire ordeal which lasted for three minutes. Heart could have done it in seconds but this was a test. Lucky for the pegasus she passed. Heart was done and spoke calmly. "You can sit now."

As soon as he said anything she fell to the floor. Her head laid in a puddle of blood from her eye.

The earth pony watched. Her blood boiled from her hate for Heart. "I will kill you! You are a monster!"

Heart snickered. "Do you think you will live through this? These next few hours will be your last moments in this world, and I promise you that they will be painful." Heart turned to the other rebel. It was a unicorn stallion. His magic had been disabled and held no hope of escape of defense.

Heart removed the muzzle. "How about you? Do you regret your planning?"

The stallion looked at Heart, then back to the earth pony. "I do not blame you sis. I love you no matter what happens."

Heart lashed him in the face. Heart had the whip waiting behind his back. "So you are siblings? How interesting."

The stallion had not lost his fire. He spit in Heart's face. "You are scum! A pathetic excuse of a-" He was cut off by another lash to the face. The first did little damage but the second left four cuts on his muzzle. Small amounts of blood trickled down.

"Don't you touch him!" The earth pony tried defend her brother with words but it did nothing.

Heart looked at her. "It seems you get a better punishment than I thought I was giving." Heart looked at the stallion who sneered at him. Heart didn't care. He backed up and found the instrument he wanted. It was a whip with three metal claws at the end. Heart used it on the stallion's side. At first it was grunts as Heart hit him. The mare kept telling Heart ot stop with no luck. The stallion screamed when the hooks successfully hit there mark. When Heart brought the whip back pieces of flesh came with it. The stallion squirmed trying to escape.

It was hopeless. This continued for an hour. By the time Heart stopped the side that was being hit was just raw meat. Hardly any flesh was left. Blood flowed over the floor. Heart stopped and talked. "I am glad I told them to put some plastic. This would have been a bitch to clean up."

The earth pony couldn't believe what she heard. "How can you care about that? Look at my brother!"

Heart looked at his hooves. They had a ring where the blood had stained them. He talked as he lifted them and examined them. "Well I can talk about it because I know what is going to happen next."

"What?" The mare found out quickly as Heart created an instant inferno surrounding the stallion. No other pony was effect but he died in seconds. "NOOOOOO!" The mare looked at the ash that was now her brother. She wept. "Why?" Tears rolled down her muzzle onto the ground. "Why…?"

Heart was glad to know that he broke her. "All that anger. All that fury. Gone in an instant. Finale time!"

The mare looked up at Heart. "What?" The emotional pain was easily seen in her eyes.

Heart had a pep in his step. "You now have endured your punishment for wanting to hurt my family. Now it is time for your punishment for betraying Equestria." Heart brought over his tools. "This is the point where that spell really sees it's use." Heart took a blade and danced it along her spin. It did not cut her as he did this. "Are you ready?"

"For what?"

"Your skinning."

"What?"

Heart stuck the blade into her back. She screamed in agony from the small cut. The feeling would have hurt to the common pony but with the enhancement it felt a hundred times worse. Heart slip the blade back up her spine. He was off set to the left and did not her actual spine. When he reached her neck he slid down her barrel and stopped at the bottom of her chest. He went to the back and sliced down to her belly.

Afterwards he used his magic to grip the cut flesh and began to peel it off the mare.

"AAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The mare couldn't mange anything but screams.

Heart enjoyed punishing her. He had a wide grin. The mare didn't believe this level of pain existed. She was tortured ever second as the flesh was torn from the muscle. Blood splashed on Heart's white fur.

"STOP! PLEASE STOP!"

"No!" As punishment Heart went to her head and cut off both of her ears. He then shoved them into her mouth. "Chew!"

The mare cried with a pleading face. She shook her head hoping Heart would stop.

"I said CHEW!"

The mare did as she was told and chewed her own ears.

"Make sure to swallow."

The mare tasted her own flesh. The cartilage was soft and had to be chewed extensively. She felt it mold under her teeth. It squished with each bite. She barely managed to complete the task between her bawling. Once Heart saw that she swallowed he insulted her. "You animal! You disgust me. Eating yourself? That deserves it's own punishment."

Heart took some pliers from his tools. He forced open the earth pony's mouth and grabbed hold of a tooth. He yanked and yanked until it was removed. Blood filled the mare's mouth. Looking at her side. The flesh that he had been tearing off hung limp at her side, about half way to her bottom. Heart kicked it with his hoof and it flopped around causing the mare more pain.

Heart would come back to that. For the moment he was focused on his dental career. He removed each tooth one by one. Each time filling the room with her wet screams. Once that was done Heart felt better about going back to his other project. He decided he liked it better as it was and did the other side the same way. Heart looked at the blood on the floor. He decided that she wouldn't last much longer and was going to end it.

Heart looked under the pony. He took his blade and made a small cut on her belly. He used he magic to reach inside the cut and pull out her intestines. He cut it to make a single hose out of the meat. Blood flowed from her belly to the floor. It splattered along with her other organs. Wet thuds bounced around the room.

She couldn't stop screaming. Her voice was breaking from the strain. Heart brought the meat to her face.

Heart acted peppy and added enthusiasm to his words. "Time for desert. Let's test that whole snake eating it's tail thing." Heart forced her mouth open again and began to feed her intestines down her throat. Heart just kept pulling more out and putting more in. A rancid smell of her digesting food filled the air.

The mare's eyes rolled back into her head at the loss of oxygen. She passed out and then died. It was a sickening sight. Organs were strewn across the floor. The mare limp and hind touching the ground but her neck was holding up her front half. Her side muscles were completely exposed with the skin removed. It would have disgusted most ponies but Heart was happy to see it. A hunk of meat that was a rebel pony. _'You will not ruin our future. I won't let you take it from the ponies that deserve it.'_

Heart opened the door to the hall. "The one that is alive stays that way. Release her and let her be an example to those who oppose us."

One of the guards looked in and went wide eyed. He had to cover his nostrils to enter the room.

Heart walked away. He went to go clean himself. His white coat was now majority red. He could not let Scootaloo see him like this. He bathed in a separate room meant for guests at the castle. Once clean he went to his and Scootaloo's room. He had lowered the sun before torturing the rebel. He entered his room.

He was expecting to be greeted by a cheerful Scootaloo but no such thing happened. Heart scanned the room but didn't find her. He checked the bathroom. He saw something that he didn't like. Scootaloo was sitting next to the sink looking sad.

Heart saw a pregnancy test on the sink. Heart couldn't see what it said but he took a guess that it was not positive. He managed to slip in without being noticed. He confirmed his suspicion before confronting Scootaloo. "Hey Scoot, what is wrong."

Scootaloo turned slowly. Her usual glow was gone. "I thought that I would be pregnant by now. Why aren't I?"

Heart could not answer that question. "I don't know. It is a little early to tell anyhow. Give it some more time. Before you know it you will be a tubby little pony eating for two.

"It hasn't even happened yet and you are already calling me fat!"

Heart out a foreleg around Scootaloo. "No matter how big you get I will love you. There will just be more to love."

Scootaloo finally smiled. "You better, cause you aren't getting rid of me."

"I wouldn't ever want to. How about we go and try and make you fat now." Heart bit her ear in attempting to get her to say yes.

Scootaloo didn't need it. She giggle and pushed him away. "Stop! That tickles!" Heart went in for another attack but Scootaloo ran out of the bathroom to escape. "No tickling!" Scootaloo hopped on the bed. "We can try some more but we do it my way."

Heart didn't care. "Whatever it takes to make you happy."

**A/N: The impatient pegasus. At she knows what she wants. I wonder what Heart's kid will look like? Will it be a boy or girl? Will it be a pegasus or unicorn? We will find out soon enough. Oh yeah I am sorry about Zecora. I am not any good at rhyming and I felt I would not do her justice. So instead of insulting her with crappy rhyming I decided it would be better to not do it at all. Sorry everyone but I felt this was a better course. ~ sci-fi.**


	21. Shooting blanks

**A/N: Oh shit! I'm sorry guys, I had a very busy Wednesday and I forgot to post. I still have chapters don't worry. To make it up to you I will post on Tuesday for chapter 21. Sorry, I truly am.~ sci-fi**

Chapter 20: Shooting blanks.

Dominic Brightstone had explained the situation to Zecora and in turn she told what she knew. Zecora knew the ritual Dominic spoke of but she had some concerns. They could not perform the ritual on Heart's Vision if he fought them. It took too much time and effort to do it on a willing pony. Zecora also explained that they would need a living vessel or a particular device to contain the windegoes. Twilight Sparkle refused to have any creature be forced to have the spirits in them.

Zecora understood. She told them that she would begin searching for the artifact they needed. She told them that she did not know how long it would take to locate one. They were very rare and old. Once located the problem would be acquiring it. Rainbow Dash was not happy about this. "How great, more waiting!"

Dominic looked at the pegasus. "We can't rush this. One wrong move and many ponies die. You have to be patient."

Rainbow didn't know this creature and didn't appreciate his wisdom. "Why should we listen to you? We don't know you. Judging from Zecora's actions we shouldn't trust you."

Dominic did not get angry. "You don't know me, that is true. Whether you trust me is your choice. I don't want to see anymore war. I am tired of death. Have you ever seen war Rainbow?"

Rainbow didn't understand why he asked but answered the question. "No. Equestria has been at peace for like, ever."

"Do you want to see it? That is what your way will bring. Heart's followers verses the old rulers. The elements will most likely stop him but how many will die before they can? What if one of you die before you have the chance? Who will stop him then? We don't have enough alicorns to stand up to Heart. It would take so many more normal ponies for us to stop him. He won't show the mercy we will. The windegoes will ensure that. He will be filled with so much hate who knows what he will do. I have seen what hate can do. Unless you want to see horrors you never could imagine than I suggest you shut up and listen to Twilight." Every pony watched as Dominic tore into Rainbow.

Rainbow let out a growl before storming out of the hut. Twilight looked at Dominic. "She is just trying to fix this. There is no need for that."

"I think otherwise."

Twilight walked out in search of Rainbow.

Heart's Vision sat on his throne as he had grown accustom to. Today he seemed different. He usually was in a happy or impartial mood but today he held a angered frown.

Chaotic Love caught onto Heart's mood and feared for the others. "What is on your mind Heart? You seem upset."

Heart slowly turned to Chaotic. Heart's eyes were cold but it didn't seem it was directed towards Chaotic. "If you must know I have received some…" Heart stopped mid sentence and broke his composer. "Some really fucked up news. I finally decide to have a kid with Scoot and life decides to spit in my face once more! Why can't I get a break? Why everything go wrong with me!? I just want to give Scoot what she wants? All I want to do is make her happy but NO! I can't even do that it seems!"

"You make her happier than you know. but what problem did life dish you this time? maybe I might know of a way to help. so please if for nothing else then ranting so you do not hurt your subjects without thinking, tell me what this hindrance is."

Heart calmed himself down. He took some deep breaths before speaking. "I went to the doctor some time ago for a regular check up. I was talking about me and Scoot trying to have a kid. The doctor asked if I would give her a sample of my uhh…. You know and I got the results this morning. It turns out that I am infertile." Heart eyed the floor disappointed in himself. "I can't have a kid. I can't even give Scoot what she really wants. I am a failure."

Chaotic was almost shocked at the information but was also saddened by it. he may not like how heart had turned out, but he didn't think he didn't deserve to have a child. and he liked Scootaloo, so it was unfair to her as well. "It may not be as hopeless as you think it is. I know of a few magics and brews that might just be able to help you. it might take some time for me to find them again, but I can look if you wish me to. and this doesn't make you a failure, it just means you have to try harder than the rest of us. you are the king so I have no right to do so without your consent, so it is your choice if you would want me to try and find something to help you."

Heart thought about it. He was still unsure if he could trust Chaotic but he couldn't let that stand in the way of Scootaloo's joy. "Very well. I would appreciate it if you could help me fix this problem. I don't know what else to do, and I don't want to disappoint Scoot."

Chaotic nodded. "As you wish. and i can't blame you either. i will be in the lower levels of the archives if you need me further. i will keep you filled in on what i find. i think i remember right where it is, but don't quote me on that statement. and i will work as fast as possible. but you still might want to think about telling her so she knows why she is waiting and doesn't think worse of herself. mares tend to blame themselves when it comes to things with foals. and yes i am speaking from experience. but it is your choice." Then Chaotic got up and left.

Heart debated whether to tell Scootaloo or not. _'What if she blames me? It is my fault after all.'_ Heart thought about his dreams. All the times he has seen Scootaloo leave him. It was one thing to wake up and realize the truth but he didn't think he could bare. _'I will just blame it on luck. I'll convince her it isn't her fault. No pony will be at fault and everything will be alright.'_

Lightning Hoof walked into the throne room to trade with Sun Petal. Petal whispered into Lightning's ear as she passed. His eyes went wide and looked at Heart. Heart saw this happen but didn't care if he knew. Petal left the room and Lightning sat next to Heart. "Are you ok?"

"I am fine Lightning. It is my problem to deal with."

"I can't know how you feel but it will be alright. Maybe you can convince Scootaloo to adopt."

Heart wasn't looking for advice but he did think that Lightning was onto something. "That is actually smart. I will see how she feels about it."

Lachrymose listened and debated whether to say anything. She thought it would bring Heart some misery but se was held back by two things. The most important was what Petal would think. Lachrymose didn't want her to be upset. The second was how Heart had defended the changeling. She was torn. She couldn't understand how he could torture one changeling and then go out of his way to save another. Lachrymose had to think more on this before making a decision.

In another part of Canterlot Petal walked into a Lantern learning center. It was a large building that was made shortly after Heart became an adviser. It was built by Lanterns with the intent of teaching. It had many large classrooms where ponies could learn anything from chemistry to woodworking. As Petal walked into the room she was told to go to. The little ponies waved and smiled at her when they saw her. She regularly stopped by and the kids seemed to like her. Today she was going to teach some alchemy. The instructors asked her to teach it because it was Petal's special talent. It was ironic that this was her special talent but she knew nothing that could help Heart.

She had around twenty students during her lesson. Some did better than others. A few couldn't grasp it at all. The learning center had a different atmosphere than the public schools. The children didn't form groups to separate each other. They all worked together. The ones that understood it helped those who didn't. Petal enjoyed teaching the kids. They were full of spirit and ready to learn. None of them were forced to be here. They had all signed up to be Lanterns. When they were in the center they learned useful skills as well as the Lantern guidelines. This was the first level of being a Lantern. With Petal's Beacon rank being the highest.

There was other ranks as well. There were hunters, recruiters, instructors, as well as more. As a Beacon Petal was one of the highest ranking members in the Lantern's. She only had to answer directly to Heart. The other Beacons were her equals and every other pony was below her. She had finished her lesson and was talking to the little ponies before leaving. A little colt raised his hoof to ask a question. "Why does Heart's Vision kill the bad ponies?"

Petal corrected the pony before answering. "King Heart. He does that so they can never hurt us. They have a chance to redeem themselves and if not they are removed from this world to prevent harm to the good ponies."

This pony was young and had not experience much. He was naïve. "But isn't killing ponies bad? Aren't we not suppose to be like that?"

"It is different. We aren't killing for our own selves. We are doing it to protect ponies."

"But why kill them? Why not just lock them up like we did before?"

Petal was getting a little irritated by this colt. "That cost money. We feed them and take care of them. That isn't the punishment they deserve. They get what they deserve with death."

The colt said something that was very odd for such a young pony to say. "Who decides what they deserve?"

"King Heart."

"What if he is wrong? My parents say it is wrong to kill ponies. Does that make Heart wrong."

Petal stood up. She walked over to the pony. She had lost every bit of her happy mood. "Every other pony leave." She received some odd looks and whys. "Leave!" The second time the students listened. After the group left, the colt was still sitting on the floor. Petal stood over the colt with cold eyes. "You are trouble."

"What?" The colt did not understand what was happening. He was afraid. His fear was well placed.

Petal didn't explain. She hit the small colt in the face with her hoof. He was knocked to the ground and dazed. He yelped and was starting to cry. He didn't try to get up. Petal placed her hoof on the colt's head. "I don't like trouble." Petal saw this pony as a problem that needed to be dealt with and she dealt with problems. She slowly applied force on her hoof.

The colt started to scream as the pressure increased on his head. Petal didn't let up. She simply applied more force. "Don't ever doubt Heart." The colt could hear his skull pop and squeak as it began to give in. The colt begged for it to stop. He got his wish. The colt's head caved in killing him. Petal looked at the pony dead on the tiled floor. Blood pooled around him. Some of it got on her hooves. She felt no remorse for her actions. She walked out of the room. Before she left she told one of the instructors that she left a mess in the room. The instructor didn't think anything of it and told her he would take care of it. Petal went back to the castle. She wasn't doing anything else today and wanted to spend time with Lachrymose, After she washed the blood off her hooves. No pony noticed it as she walked down the street.

Heart and Lightning went to the outskirts of town. Heart brought was planning on going alone but Lightning had insisted on coming. "Lead Road can handle things while were gone."

"You are right but I would rather you there."

Lightning didn't understand. "Why? Lead is better with ponies. Also better at writing down information."

"I am unsure where his loyalty lays."

This was the first time that Lightning was hearing about anything of this sort. "Why do you say that? I haven't noticed anything."

Heart only had suspicions. "I am not sure myself but it is the way he acts around me. He looks at me differently. He questioned when I took over as well." Heart and Lightning stood at the entrance of an old prison.

Two guards stood at the gate. They bowed and opened the door. Heart chose this location because of it's security as well as being remote. They went into the cell blocks. Walls had been torn down to form large rooms for the scientists. Heart walked up to a female unicorn that was ordering the others ponies around. "How is the research going?"

The unicorn turned around. "Oh, my king I didn't see you come in." the flustered pony bowed.

Heart smiled. "It is ok."

The unicorn was a scientist for Heart's gun project. She turned to Lightning. "I see you brought Lightning Hoof."

Lightning Hoof had never met this pony and didn't know her. "I'm sorry but I don't know your name."

The scientist held her hoof out. "I am Philic Knowledge."

Lightning thought the name unusual but said nothing. He shook the mare's hoof. "Nice to meet you."

Heart brought business back up. "Again, how is the research going?"

"It is… ok. The information you gave us helped but are having trouble finding other uses for the explosives. As well as finding the best materials for it. Some of our experiments had some unfortunate results."

Heart wanted to know what it was costing him. "What happened?"

"Some pony got the wrong type of fuse and the explosive went off way too early. The pony was badly injured."

Heart showed no emotion. "Have we yielded any positive results? Any military applications?"

Philic had nothing for her king. "Nothing like what you talked about. The main problem is the it would take a unicorn to operate any kind of small gun. The best we can give is the large scale, with cannons. We could probably use our explosive powders for mining."

Heart was happy with the advancement but he wanted to see. "Show me."

Philic wasn't expecting to demonstrate anything but made rush arrangements. It didn't take long when the ponies found out Heart was the one watching. The experimenters set up their crude device outside in the courtyard of the prison. It looked similar to human cannons but it was a prototype and wasn't held to a standard yet. It had no wheels. It consisted of a meal tube with a solid wooden stand. The stand seemed pretty sturdy but the metal didn't look like it would last very long.

A unicorn put a long fuse down the barrel of the cannon before loading a misshapen metal ball. The pony stepped back and lit the fuse with magic. The cannon was faced a huge stone wall that had previously held prisoners inside the courtyard. The pony ran away back to a safety zone.

Heart stood in a watchmens tower far away from the cannon he could still se what was happening but wasn't in any harm. After some long seconds of waiting nothing happened. Philic sweat as her work faltered in front of her leader. She grabbed a pony and growled at him to go get that thing working. He rushed out there to see what was going on. The fuse was completely gone and the pony didn't know what was wrong he examined the barrel.

A massive boom shook the air. The barrel of the cannon exploded but not how it should have. The ball went flying out but the barrel split open as well. Shrapnel went flying through the air at high speed. A piece lodged into the pony's forehead. He dropped dead on the spot. Blood ran down his face and onto the dry dirt of the courtyard. The ball had hit the wall and dislodged large pieces of it.

Heart didn't show much emotion. "Shit…"

Lightning was wide eyed. As paramedics rushed to the pony.

Heart could tell it was too late for the pony. "Looks like we are a way off from the desired product. Unfortunate that a pony had to be harmed in this process." Heart turned to Philic. " Give me something I can use. I like the cannon but it needs improvement. We may need it in the future. I believe that evil will show its fangs soon enough."

"Yes sir."

Chaotic went to the archives and started to look for the information to help Scootaloo. but while he looked he couldn't stand not being able to have the normal mental connection to Luna. it was taxing on her to keep it open now that her powers were gone. Heart might have left her enough to live, but not much more than that to spare. Her and Celestia were down to the level of magic of a foal in school. so now Chaotic had to fall to the level of asking a friend of his that was changeling to hook Luna up to the hive mind for shot phone calls. it pissed him off, but was still better than nothing, or having her and Moon anywhere near this psycho for the time being.

_'Hey Sunny are you near Twilight's castle? And do you mind if I talk to Luna? I have some news for her and just miss her like crazy.' _Chaotic could feel Sunny roll her eyes and laugh lightly. _'Hey give me five an I'll be at her room. mind if I ask what the news is?'_ Chaotic smiled. _'I will when i tell Luna. its not something the King would want every pony or Changeling around to know. especially since he is actually trusting me to try and fix it. so I cant let it spread.' _Sunny nodded. _'Understood big c.' _it only took the rest of the 5 minutes till sunny told Chaotic that he was at the door and Luna was coming to it.

Luna answered the door not knowing who it was and was happy to see Sunny. "Oh Sunny how are you? And what brings you by at this time of day?" Sunny just smiled back and fake saluted. "Message from the captain ma'am." Luna couldn't help but laugh at the antics. "You really are to much like my husband for our own good." Sunny laughed as well "It must be being connected to him all the time. now mind if I come in and start the connection?" Luna nodded and walked to the side. "Of course! please do!" then Sunny walked in and sat down on a pillow that was set up for this purpose and Luna took her spot on her pillow and closed her eyes. then Sunny put her horn oh Luna's temple and Luna was thrown into the hive mind.

_'Oh I still can't get used to that.' _her answer was hearing Chaotic's voice. _'Ya but I just hope it's worth it to hear my voice, sine I'm going crazy not hearing yours all the time.' _Luna couldn't help smiling. _'Thank the moon I can hear your voice again. So what has you calling me at this time of day? usually you are stuck next Heart right now.' _Chaotic shut off the hive mind to all except him Luna and Sunny_. 'He found out he was infertile and was fuming. so I offered to try and help him so that he wont let Scoots down. and so he wont hurt others out of spite of his own fault. so I'm in the archive looking for ways to make him fertile.'_ Luna and Sunny both gasped at the new information.

_'Why would you help him?' _Luna was confused and had to ask but Chaotic answered simply. _'because he's not fully evil, and Scootaloo deserves to be happy. and with her as the mother I am hoping it will make his love out way his hate and anger. besides that. as of now he still deserves the chance to have a foal. so speaking of which, how's Moon?' _Luna could understand Chaotic's hope that this would help Heart stay away from evil. _'Moon is doing well in school and growing in magic fast. and Illusion is doing just as well. they are study buddies so its keeping them busy and helping them both a lot. so are you still going to be home this Friday?'_ Chaotic smiled wide. _'Wouldn't miss it for the world.' _Luna smiled. _'We will be waiting for you my love. until then try and find a way to help them. see you later love.' _Chaotic returned the goodbye and sent off the hive mind to Luna. _'Thanks again Sunny. it means a lot.' _Sunny nodded. _'any time my friend.'_

**A/N: ok so DLB here and Sunny is just a changeling that came into play as a friend that wanted to help out her king and queen. and ya Dan is still considered a king of changelings. Heart is just a leader to them but the loyalty is still with Crissy, virus and Dan, and somewhat Luna. Sunny was not mentioned before and will be back almost every time Luna and Dan talk now that she can't keep the mental link. she will be there in prompt to link for now. so don't wonder to much on where she came from like Sci-fi did. hehehe. oh well gotta mess with him some how while working on this with him. so enjoy, and please leave a review to tell us what ya think and how we are doing. ~DragonLovingBrony**

**A/N: When you introduce a new character out of nowhere I'm gonna be like what the fuck. I thought I had missed a step or some shit but no it is just DLB messing with me. Well I hope you all are enjoying the story so far. Remember kids don't play with experimental weaponry.~ sci-fi**


	22. lies uncovered

**A/N: As I said Tuesday. Hope yall like this chapter. I think last chapter was a little too soft. Need some DRAMA. Let me see what we can do about that.~ sci-fi**

Chapter 21: Lies uncovered

_Heart's Vision sat next to Scootaloo as she gave birth. The hollered as the doctor gave her instructions. "One final push should do it. Give me a strong one." _

_Scootaloo followed the doctor's instruction. She heaved and sure enough a little foal came out. The doctor held it in his hooves. He examined it, a frown came to his face. _

_Heart looked at the doctor with concern. "What is that look about?" _

_The doctor looked back at Scootaloo and Heart. "I'm sorry." _

_Scootaloo looked at the doctor. "What is wrong!? What do you mean you are sorry!" _

_Scootaloo's concern was not misplaced. A nurse took the would be foal away from the doctor as he spoke. "You will not be parents." _

_Scootaloo didn't know what to do. She couldn't accept the news right away.. "What?" _

_Heart was different, he understood what the doctor was saying immediately. He felt as if he had took a hit to his gut. The pair had waited for all this time for nothing. _

_A week later the couple was sitting in their room in the castle. Scootaloo laid on the bed as she had all week. Her eyes were swollen from crying. She ate little to nothing. Heart hated to see her this way. He crawled up to her. "Hey, it will be ok." Heart wanted to say more but he couldn't think of anything. _

_Heart attempted to wrap his forelegs around Scootaloo but she pushed him away. "Get away from me." _

_Heart just tried again. "I know you hurt but I didn't do anything to you." _

_Scootaloo pushed him away again. "I said leave me alone. This is your fault!" _

_Heart was hurt. "It was no ponies fault." _

"_No, it is your's. You and your stupid infertility. At first we couldn't conceive and now this. It has to be you. It Is all your fault!" _

_Heart felt hallow inside. It hurt because he thought the same thing. "I guess your right. It is always me." _

_Scootaloo'a sadness had been replaced with anger. "Why did I have to marry you? I should have met some other stallion. You bring nothing but misery." _

_Heart now felt like crying at his love's words. "Do you really think that?"_

"_YES! Now go jump off a bridge or something. I don't want to see you anymore." _

_Heart backed away and exited the room. He took a long walk to the castle tower. A telescope was placed near the balcony so that the rulers could look over their land as well as observe the stars. Heart looked over the railing. He mounted it and balance upon it. He looked down. It was a long drop to the waiting ground. Tears filled his eyes. "If all I do is cause pain than I don't belong here." He jumped off the ledge. His body hurled towards the ground. He watched as his tears raced him to the bottom._

"HEART!"

Heart was shaken awake by Scootaloo. "Huh?"

Scootaloo looked him over with concerned eyes. "What was it about this time?"

Heart didn't want to thin about it but he did remember what the dream was about. "Us as usual. I am not sure but I think our child was still born."

Heart's words struck a sickle of fear into Scootaloo. "No…"

Heart wanted to shake away any doubts Scootaloo might have been having. "It was just a dream. No more important than any other."

"But what if?"

Heart didn't want to entertain the thought. "No. When we have a kid it will be perfectly fine. There is no what if." Heart changed the subject. "What time is it?"

"I don't know, something like four."

Heart decided it was close enough. "I might as well stay awake. It won't be that long until I have to raise the sun. I don't have anything to do though."

Scootaloo gained a devious smile. "So you have something like two hours to waste?"

"Yeah."

Scootaloo edged closer to her husband and rubbed his shoulder pretending to examine it. "Is there anything in particular you want to do?"

Heart was not fully awake and didn't connect the dots. "At four in the morning? There isn't anything to do."

Scootaloo rolled her eyes. "Maybe something to do with having a foal…?"

Heart took a few seconds. "OH!"

Scootaloo giggled. "You are so slow in the morning."

"I JUST woke up. Give me a break."

"I will, later. Right now I need some attention."

Heart smiled. "Ask and you shall receive."

Sun Petal waited at the train station for Lead Road. Lead Road usually managed things in Ponyville but it had been a long time since he and Petal spent some time together. Lead Road walked off the train and greeted Petal with a smile. "Hi Petal. How are you?"

Petal was cheery. "Doing great. How have you been these days?"

"Same old, same old. Do you have some plans for us?"

Lead Road was a calm pony. He had gotten all the excitement out of his system in his youth. Petal understood and planned accordingly. "first I wanted to go by the restaurant down the street. Then we could go to the outskirts of town and enjoy some nature. I have been in Canterlot castle so long I think that I forgot what fresh air smells like. Sound like a good plan to you?"

Lead Road nodded. "I feared you may have wanted to do something drastic. You young ponies tend to ware me out. Lightning wanted me to go parachuting. It is one thing for him to do something like that. He has wings."

Petal chuckled. "Yeah he can be extreme. I just wanted to sit and talk, catch up a little."

"Yeah, that sounds nice." Lead Road and Petal went to a small little diner. They order a few burgers and caught up. There wasn't a whole lot to talk about but is nice having the company.

Petal finished her burger. "So is our Lantern roots still firm now that Heart has moved onto better places?"

Road paused. He looked had been looking at his food. He looked Petal in the eyes with a serious expression. "They are fine but are you sure that what we are doing is right?"

Petal didn't get what he was getting at. "What are you talking about?"

"Look at what we are doing. We are branding ponies. We are marking them as well as ourselves. We all were these stupid medallions. We are drawing a line between ourselves and the normal ponies. It was one thing when we were hunting and punishing the loose ends that the police overlooked but this is different. I have seen ponies sentenced to death for assault. All it was, was a case of raised tempers. He had already been marked so they saw it as a lost cause and gave out the death penalty like it was nothing. I have seen the good Heart has done but what if he is taking this too far?"

Petal had listened to Roads words but didn't agree with any of it. "Heart is right. Whatever degree he takes it too is the right one. Heart gave us everything. I remember when you came to us. You were barley a stallion. No pony cared about you. No pony did anything for you. You had no pony to help you and then you came to our doorstep. You asked for food. Heart gave you that and so much more. He gave you a warm bed, a home, a job, a purpose, and a family. Now you sit here and doubt him? He had given you everything you have. If it wasn't for him you would probably be a corpse in a ditch somewhere right now."

Lead Road backed down. He didn't want to upset Petal any further. "Your right. I am sorry." Lead's words did not mirror his thoughts. _'She is blind. She looks at Heart as a hero that can never be wrong but every pony makes mistakes. He is no exception. I just hope that his mistake doesn't cost all of us.'_

Heart and Scootaloo laid in bed cuddling. Heart had already raised the sun and was suppose to be in the throne room but he had something to ask Scootaloo. "What do you think of adoption?"

Scootaloo was surprised by the question. "Do you mean in general or for us?"

"For us."

"No. I don't just want a kid. I want OUR kid. It wouldn't be the same if we adopted."

Heart had a sinking feeling. "But what if we couldn't have a kid of our own?"

"Why do you ask?"

Heart debated in his head whether or not to say anything. "No reason, just curious." Heart shortly left. He had some matters to deal with today and couldn't wait around in his room all day. The day was long and drawn out for Heart. He watched the time waiting for a break. He finalized his business and went on a lunch break.

His thoughts had been consumed by his inadequacies. Which brought him to Scootaloo. He wanted to cheer up so he decided to see if Scootaloo wanted to have lunch together. He normally couldn't because have time constraints but today he decided to make time. He walked up to his room door. As he entered he heard something that he didn't like. He heard crying. He eased the door open. The crying was coming from the bathroom. He could tell it was Scootaloo and quickly went to her side. He saw the pregnancy test on the sink and figured out what was wrong. He didn't say anything he just hugged her as his guilt grew.

Scootaloo commented while she sobbed. "Why! What is going on? It should have happened by now."

Heart tried to make her feel better. "It will be fine, just give it some time. It will happen." Heart wanted to hit himself as he lied. He hated lieing to Scootaloo but he feared what would happen if he told the truth.

Scootaloo was starting to get wind that something was wrong. She didn't pointed her hoof at the wrong pony. "Is it me? Am I doing something wrong? Is there something wrong with me?"

"No, heavens no. It is just taking some time. Don't worry about it."

"I am going to worry about it. It has been long enough. I am going to schedule a appointment. Something is happening and I want ot figure out what."

"No!" Scootaloo looked at Heart oddly. He caught himself and corrected. "I mean don't waste a docs time. It is still pretty early. Please listen to me and wait."

"Ok but I will only give it two more weeks and I am taking action."

Heart cursed his luck. _'Why me? Why do I have to be the one to blame? WHY CANT I CATCH A BREAK! Why can't anything be easy? Why does fate torment me with false hopes? Whatever, it doesn't matter. I'll make my own luck like everything else.'_

The next day Heart was in his throne room with Petal. There was a pony that was not common to the throne room. Scootaloo was talking to Lachrymose. Heart thought is odd. Lachrymose was talking about getting a present for Petal.

As they spoke the throne room doors opened as Chaotic walked in with a bottle.

Chaotic was too excited to notice that Scootaloo was in the room. so he started speaking without worry. "Hey Heart! i found it! and got a temporary version of the potion working already..." that's when Chaotic noticed who all was in the room and shut up. He was glad he hadn't mentioned what the potion was for, but knew he had to play it off quickly, or Scootaloo would know his secret weather Heart told her already or not.. "Um may we speak in private? i was told you were alone."

Scootaloo noticed his excitement and was interested in what he was talking about. "What has you so worked up, and why do you have to be in private? There should be nothing you can tell my husband that you can't tell me."

Chaotic nodded. "True my lady, but i was speaking of the others in the room. then we can speak freely about this potion if Heart so wishes. if not i will just give it to you now and give you the instructions for it's use. which do you wish Heart?" Chaotic gave him a knowing look. "And please remember what i said about this subject." Then Chaotic just stood looking at Heart for an answer.

Heart felt some anger arise in him. _'Why did you have to say something you idiot.'_ Heart sighed. "Might as well talk about it here. Every pony else in the room knows about it. Might as well tell her."

Scootaloo suspected nothing sinister and smiled politely. "Tell me what?"

With a heavy heart the unicorn explained his trouble. "That potion is a fertility potion for me. I recently found out that the reason we are having problems is because of me. Chaotic offered to help fix my problem."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Heart wished that Chaotic had been a little more cautious so Heart didn't have to go through this. "Because I didn't want you to know. I wanted to fix the problem without making a big deal about it. I didn't want to upset you."

Scootaloo would have been fine with Heart telling the truth but hiding it from her is was made her upset. "So you let me think that it is my fault!? I sat there and cried because I thought something was wrong with me. Why would you do this to me? You should know by now that I would have been fine if you ad just told me the truth but you didn't. You hid it from me."

Heart thought that he felt bad before. "Scoot…"

"I don't want to hear it. Find some where else to sleep tonight. I don't want to see you." Scootaloo stormed off. She flew off fast enough to give Rainbow Dash some competition.

Chaotic had watched the whole thing in silence, then gave a heavy sigh when she left. he knew what he said next could get him killed but he said it anyway."see what i meant when i warned you of this? here is the potion. this will only last three days. the permanent one will take a month to make properly. and now if you will excuse me. i have some business that now needs to be taken care of." Then Chaotic turned to leave after placing the potion on the side of the throne where he hoped it would be out of Heart's wrath.

Heart felt that this was Chaotic's fault. "If you hadn't had said anything I would be in this mess. Next time you should keep your muzzle shut. Or at least pay attention to who is in the room. Your stupidity astounds me." Heart wanted to hurt Chaotic but he was too valuable to harm. It didn't stop Heart from blaming him.

Chaotic stopped for only a moment before leaving. "And if you had said something before this you wouldn't either. now I am going to go make sure you still have a wife after this." then He left to go find Scootaloo.

Chaotic flew for about an hour following the traces of Scootaloo that his magic picked up. it lead to a town he knew all to well. he was happy to be back, but had something to do before he could make more personal stops. So he followed the traces with his magic and found a crying mare hiding behind a familiar house. Scootaloo was crying next to a trash can behind the house that she used to live in with Heart, before the castle. before all this shit happened to her, to them. Chaotic landed and cleared his throat trying not to startle the mare. he failed as she jumped slightly, worried it was the new house owners. but then she adopted a glare when she saw who it was. "What do you want!? here to lie to me more for Heart?"

Chaotic smirked shook his head. "Not at all my lady. first let me say I thought he told you by now like I suggested, and I am sorry to find out his fear won and he failed to tell you." Scootaloo didn't believe him for a second. "Oh and keeping it secret from me is just a coincidence then?" Dan knew she was to upset to think straight after this statement. "And when have I seen you last to have a chance to tell you? especially since it is not my place to tell you something that you wouldn't believe from me anyway?" Scootaloo thought about it for a few second and couldn't think of the last time she had seen him let alone talked to him about anything. and she knew he was right. she wouldn't have listened to him even if he had tried to tell her.

Chaotic saw the realization in her eyes and went to sit next to her. "Besides the last couple days, as soon as he told me actually, I have been in the archives looking for that potion. then making it. so unless you would have been looking for a really boring read, we wouldn't have seen each other for me to tell you anyway. and don't think I am just covering my ass. first off I know you aren't mad at me really, and second Heart deserves a bit of fuss for hiding it from you." Scootaloo was completely caught off guard by this. "Why do you think so?" Dan gave a small laugh. "Because I told him. he should have told you before you started to blame yourself for not having a foal. I told him that it was from experience and thought he would listen."

Scootaloo was surprised that Chaotic had told heart to tell her and Heart didn't listen. And the fact Chaotic said it was from experience was even more of a surprise. "Did it happen with one of the princesses then?" Chaotic gave a sad smile. "Not, just one of them, it happened with mine." Scootaloo looked surprised and had to ask. "Do you mind me asking what happened? I know I have no right to ask you but.." Chaotic waved her off. "Actually as the queen you have all the right to ask anything you want to. but even if you didn't i will. even if only to calm you down with the fact that no matter how powerful or in control the mare, they all get worked up when it comes to foals."

Scootaloo nodded at the information and was grateful that Chaotic was being so open, and even on her side. "Now I wasn't infertile like Heart is. the problem was just the opposite. I am overly fertile. while Luna is just regular in this case. and it took us a while longer then most to actually get her pregnant, no matter how often we tried and for as long as we tried. and trust me, we might as well been rabbits at one point. but it still didn't work. Luna started blaming herself for not being fertile enough. then came the blaming me for being so different and so fertile. it started to drive a wedge in between us for a short time."

Scootaloo was shocked that this could happen to the two ponies that always seemed so in love that nothing could even crack their love for a second. heck she had seen their love in pony and couldn't believe that this had happened to two ponies that were so happy. "She really said and felt that? but you two are so perfect together!" Chaotic laughed happily. "I, my fair mare, am far from perfect. and even though our Love is stronger than most would ever think...The worst cracks in a relationship are rarely formed outside of it. she was so upset that i had a hard time calming her down. just the sight of me made her feel guilty and as if she was letting me down."

Scootaloo knew the feeling right now and wished she hadn't. but Chaotic continued. "It took her sister and Discord talking to her before she would listen to me. see I didn't care how long it took. I didn't think of whose fault it was. I figured when we were ready, when she and her body were ready, it would happen. no blame, not guilt. just hope for the future. and after I got her to see it and calm down, the stress was gone. less then a week later... the test came back positive." Chaotic chuckled. "we were both so stressed with trying and that it didn't work right off the bat that it made our bodies, her worse than mine, so that a foal couldn't be conceived. and because of that we almost ruined the best thing in our lives. Having each other."

Scootaloo was starting to understand why Chaotic was telling her this. "Don't get me wrong. Heart needs to tell you the truth from the start. that mind trick of his. make him use it so he can't lie to you or hide anything. then you tell him everything and make him tell you everything. then when its all out in the open. let it go. its the only way that you two will last. trust me. I hid a side of me from Luna and it almost got her and Nick killed. now hes not that bad of course, but you get the point. the thing you don't know is the fear he felt about telling you. he has a lot of inadequacies when it comes to himself and being good enough for you. and I know you tell him, and that helps, but he still needs to be told and reminded."

Scootaloo finished his sentence. "Just like every stallion does?" Chaotic smiled at her and nodded. "now you are catching on. and do you remember the dream he told you about him having?" Scootaloo shivered at the thought and nodded. "He didn't tell you the entire story of it. make him show you the entire dream and see and understand where his overwhelming fear of telling you the truth about his problem came from. then you can decide if you are still pissed at him. I'm not saying don't be upset that he hid it, or that its true. cause it sucks! but all I ask, not as a used to be king, or anything important. i just ask as a friend, and as a stallion that has been in a spot close to his. that you give him a chance. that's all you have to do. you do that and you will have a chance at saving this great and happy marriage."

Scootaloo was trying not to cry but understood every word that Chaotic told her. "I will give him a chance and do as you ask. as he always says... Everypony deserves a second chance. Thank you for this." Chaotic smiled happily an nodded. "Anything for a friend. would you like me to teleport you to the castle?" She shook her head. "Thanks for the offer, but I think I will fly and clear my head and think about what you said." Chaotic nodded and got up. "That sounds like a good idea my dear. now if you or Heart need me, I am going to go see my own mare, since I am here. so thank you for flying here of all places."

Scootaloo stopped him. "Before you go. I wanted to know why you don't have Luna and Moon stay in the castle?"

Chaotic gave a heavy sigh. "It's a matter of royalty. and since they are not royals and don't fully agree with Heart's actions...It is best that my loved ones and yours are not in the same castle right now. maybe later on, but for now. I believe it is safer for everyones tempers and nerves for them to be apart until things are much calmer. but thank you for thinking of them. and me. but now I think you should think of yourself and your loved one. until later Scootaloo"

"Heart wouldn't ever hurt them. I am sure he would give them their old rooms back and everything."

Chaotic gave another sigh. "Thank you for your support and I don't think he would hurt them either...but there are more complicated things behind this Scootaloo. so as much as I thank you for your kind thoughts, it will remain this way for the time being. but I hope the offer remains to later dates." Scootaloo noticed that for just a second Chaotic had turned back into the wise ruler that wasn't going to back down on the issue.

Scootaloo nodded and took flight to go see the one she loved with an open mind, and even more open heart.

Back at the castle Heart couldn't contain himself any longer. "DAMN IT!" A beam of magic shot from his horn into the walls of the castle. Chunks flew across the room from the impact. The guards cleared the room with haste when Lightning ordered them. Lightning stayed behind as well as Lachrymose. "WHY DID THAT FUCKER HAVE TO SAY ANYTHING!" Another show of Heart's power was demonstrated as he destroyed his own throne.

Lachrymose spoke calmly. "Calm down Heart. It will be ok." Lachrymose regretted what she said when Heart turned to her and she saw his flaming eyes.

"Oh really? It will all be just ok! This is not some petty little fling. That is the love of my life! And now she knows that I am to blame for our problems. I was going to fix it, but NO that damn human had to say something! I'm going to kill that insolent fool!"

While Heart went on his rant Lachrymose sent a message to Chaotic, telling him to not come back to the castle until Heart calmed down.

Lightning did his best to calm his leader. "You are just upset my king. Calm down and you can make this right."

Heart huffed for a minute before he took a deep breath and heeded Lightning's words. "You are right. I should control myself." Heart took a minute to think. He knew he could not catch up to Scootaloo. He would also have to find her. He decided to wait for her in their room. He told Lightning where he would be incase she came back to the throne room.

Heart still had his rage he was just bottling it in. As he left the throne room he blew the doors off the hinges. Heart went out of earshot of Lightning and Lachrymose.

Heart waited in the room taking the time to calm down. It took a while before Scootaloo came but she did come. As she opened the door Heart saw her and teleported the measly distance and hugger her. "I'm sorry. Please forgive me. I-I just was scared."

Scootaloo refrained from showing her affections. She did as Chaotic told her. "Let me into you mind and I will consider it."

Heart didn't even protest. He quickly preformed the spell. The next thing Scootaloo knew she was in there old home, back in Ponyville.

Scootaloo felt how he felt and knew he was being honest. She felt his sadness, his remorse, his regret. She was curious why Heart chose their old home. "Why did you pick here?"

Heart wanted to cry but didn't. "Because my saddest and happiest memories are here. All my happiness comes from you and this is when I spent the most time with you. I'm sorry Scoot I-" Heart was going to continue and explain why he did it but Scootaloo didn't want to hear it.

"Shh. I have some questions." Heart nodded. "Do you love me?"

"Of course! I will always love you!"

Scootaloo put her hoof up. "Do you want to have a kid with me?"

Heart hesitated. "Yes."

Scootaloo knew why he hesitated and didn't question it. He was just afraid of being a father. "Will you ever lie to me again?"

Heart was stunned. He bit his lip. He looked her in the eye and spoke words of truth. "Yes."

Scootaloo was shocked. "What? Why!"

Heart wasn't going to lie now. "Because I will not tell you everything about being king. I will not lie about any subject like this but I won't tell you about the horrible things I see as king. When you ask me what happened today I will not tell you about the sadness I have seen. I won't put that burden on you. So I will lie to you but I will do it to protect you."

Scootaloo frowned. "I can't have that Heart. I can't second guess the words you speak."

"Let's make a deal. If I say that I swear than I will no matter what tell the truth. If I say the words I swear than I am not lieing. Does that sound good to you?"

Scootaloo didn't like it. "Why can't you just tell me the truth?"

"Scoot, you know how you hated hearing me about killing ponies? Well now I HAVE to decide if a pony lives or dies. It is now my job. You don't want to hear that. I don't want you to either. Just trust me and I will never do anything like this again."

"How can I trust you after this? You lied to my face. You knew how I felt and you did nothing to stop it. You let me believe that it was my fault. You watched me cry." As she spoke her words she felt Heart became even sadder. He knew what he did and hated it.

Heart didn't know what to do. He didn't know how to fix his mistake. "I can only tell you what I thought. I thought that I could fix it before you suspected anything. I wanted so bad to say something. I hate seeing you sad but I couldn't bring myself to tell you. I was weak and a failure." Heart looked at the fictional ground below his hooves. "If you want to leave me than that is your right."

Scootaloo didn't want to leave Heart but she wanted to know what would happen. "What would you do if I did leave you?…" Scootaloo didn't like her answer. She hated but she had felt it a few times now. Overwhelmed by Heart's emotions. But that is not what struck her to the core. It was a clone image of Heart. The clone took a blade and slit it's throat. The clone fell to the floor gurgling and sobbing. The tears mixed with the blood, creating a pool of despair and surrender. Scootaloo screamed at the site of her love killing himself. Heart hadn't purposefully put the image there but he did force it away. "Don't ever think like that!"

"I'm sorry it just slipped in. Add it to my many failures."

Scootaloo came closer to the down pony. She lifted his head and looked him in those red watered up eyes. "You are not a failure and I am not going to leave you. You messed up but that doesn't mean you failed. You always say that it isn't a failure if you learned from your mistake. Did you learn anything?"

Heart nodded. "Yes, don't lie to my better half."

Scootaloo was glad he learned something. "Than you are not a failure. You are too hard on yourself." Scootaloo had one thing else to ask before she would leave. "I wanted to know more about your dream. The one about us having a kid."

Heart wished she had not said anything. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"I warned you." Heart proceeded to show her his dream. She hated it but it was better for her to see it.

"Heart… I wouldn't do that."

Heart was so frustrated. "I know! It just constantly persists! I have nightmares every night. I don't know what to do."

"Maybe Chaotic can help out." Scootaloo regretted mentioning him as she felt Heart's anger.

Heart grinded his teeth. "I would rather not go to him again."

"He is the one that convinced me to not be mad at you. He is trying to help you. He made that potion as well. Please ask if he can help somehow."

Heart hated it but he would do anything for Scootaloo. "Ok."

Scootaloo had enough this seriousness. "How about we leave your mind and relax for a little bit?"

"I would like that."

Heart disengaged the spell. Scootaloo hugged him and gave him a kiss. "You don't need to lie to me about stuff like that. I love you for who you are. Now I'm tired, let's lay down for a bit."

Heart was just happy that he hadn't ruined his life. He crawled into the large bed. He laid his head on the pillow and closed his eyes. He had enough excitement for today. Scootaloo followed his lead.

Earlier in the throne room. Lightning looked at the mess lying on the floor "I'll get some pony to clean this up. You can go see what Petal and Road are up to."

Lachrymose was surprised that Lightning was letting her do something without a escort. "Really? You aren't going to have one of the guards follow me, maybe put some kind of leash on me, nothing?"

Lightning laughed. "You already have a leash. Petal's sweet nectar. Hahaha!" Lightning continued to laugh at his own joke that Lachrymose didn't find funny. She rolled her eyes and started to leave but was stopped by the pegasus. "Wait. I actually wanted to ask a favor."

"What is it you want?"

"Well you can change into any pony right?"

Lachrymose didn't see where this was going. "Yeah…?"

Lightning had made some bets that he couldn't fulfill. "Well… I may have said that I could get my hooves around Fleur De Lis. I was wondering if you could do me a favor and pose as her."

"Wait, you want me to look like another pony to show your friends that you could get her?"

"Actually I didn't actually say I would date her I just need some… pictures"

Lachrymose really didn't like this. "Of what?"

"Nothing with me in it, just something explicit."

"You're a pig!"

Lightning expected this and had a back up plan. "You know that Petal has a thing for her?"

Lachrymose had been told no such thing. "No she doesn't, and how would you know. You didn't even know she was bi."

"I didn't until I found out she is batting for the other team but after I thought about it I always wondered why I found my magazines in places I didn't put them. And one of them has a certain photo of a certain mare missing from it."

"That could have been any pony. Was probably one of your piggy friends."

"No, no, no. Because I stayed with Petal and Lead. And I KNOW Lead had is own stash so it had to be Petal."

Lachrymose was done talking about it. "I won't take pics for you, you dirty pony. Now I am going to see Petal and tell her what you said." Lachrymose left to find Petal. After some searching she found her at the train station saying goodbye to Lead. Lead departed and the two walked back to the castle. Lachrymose wasn't kidding when she said she was going to tell Petal. She explained all of what Lightning had said. Petal just waited and listened.

After Lachrymose was done Petal stared off into space. "He knew?"

**A/N: HA! Petal is more devious than Lachrymose thought. I really like this chapter. It is lengthy and I think it has good quality. The next chapter might be a little disappointing in comparison but shouldn't be horrible. I originally thought that this chapter was going to be extremely short. I was wrong. Took all day to make but I think it was worth it. Shout out to DLB for amping it up a level. I hope you all enjoy have pleasant days. ~sci-fi **


	23. Favors and discrimination

**A/N: Tired so I am posting a little early. I feel like shit but I plan on working my hardest on later chapters of VV. Make war, fuck the hippies~ sci-fi**

Chapter 22: favors and discrimination.

After the Talk with Scootaloo, Chaotic Love was feeling very lonely and missing his family more than ever. so he figured Scootaloo and Heart's Vision would need time to talk things out before they needed to know how the potion he had given them would work. and even longer before Chaotic would need to make the permanent one so he was going to Luna and Moon Love. If Heart was still pissed at him later so be it. He didn't care at the moment, all he cared about was being in the hooves of the one he loved and missed. then holding his little filly in his hooves. so he flew to Twilight Sparkle's castle and landed outside it. "Been a long time, too long."

then Chaotic walked in and didn't see anyone. He walked to Luna's room hoping she would be there. and to his luck Luna was napping when he came into the room. Moon was cuddled next to her mother asleep under her wing. Chaotic couldn't help but smile at the sight, and then sigh at him not being in it. Chaotic knew his role was important, but he hate it because it separated him from his family. so without waking either of them Chaotic snuck closer to them and laid next to Luna and wrapped his wing around her like he was used to and made sure neither of them woke up. then he used the magic he learned from Luna and made a dream scape for the three of them.

Luna opened her eyes from a dream that she was not entirely enjoying when she saw Moon standing and looking around confused. "Momma did you do this? but I thought you couldn't do it because that meany stole your powers?" Luna had no answer. "I didn't do this my little one." then a voice that both had wished to hear spoke happily. "He may have taken your mothers powers but not mine so we can still do this when ever I am around my little filly. "Moon spun and ran as fast as the dream world would let her to her father and jumped up and hugged his neck happily giggling.

Luna gave a smile when she saw her beloved hugging their filly. then she followed suit and hugged him tightly. "It is good to see you my love, but I didn't think you could do this without being next to us? and that you were at the castle." Chaotic gave a smirk. "I was until I started a fight over foals between Scoots and Heart." Luna gasped and looked scared, but Chaotic smiled to calm her. "Don't worry. he didn't kill or imprison me. I just talked Scootaloo out of making Heart sleep somewhere else and hating him. so she is on her way home to him and I figured since I was in the area I would come home to you two. so guess who's cuddled up with you?" Chaotic gave a smirk that Luna loved to see.

Luna kissed him deeply as a happy answer. then Moon spoke up in his hooves. "So you're home! then we can play when we wake up!?" Chaotic laughed happily. "Oh yes we can my little moon walker!" Moon jumped around happily and couldn't wait to wake up from her nap. Luna was looking forward to waking up as well. she had missed Chaotic's touch so much. so the three enjoyed their time together in the dream and then woke up ready to spend time together for the rest of the day until he had to return the next day in the after noon.

So Chaotic and Moon played her favorite games all day until the moon rose. then Chaotic put Moon in bed and read her a bed time story. "AWWWW but I'm not tired yet!" Chaotic couldn't help but laugh happily at the little filly's wants to stay up all night like her parents. "I know your not but your body is so let it sleep and we will play tomorrow before I leave." Moon's eyes grew with excitement. "Does that mean I can skip school to play with you!?" Chaotic nodded. "Yes, this time, but don't expect it every time I come home ok? and it still means you need to keep up the good grades ok?" Moon agreed fully before falling asleep with a smile. "That's my girl."

Then Luna had other plans for her husband that she had been missing. Chaotic was thinking the same thing and followed her to the connecting room for what was to come. Chaotic spoke directly to the reader. "But that's all you get to read about it, excuse me I have some pleasure to give my Lunar mare. bye!" The night was not spent sleeping for the two. then morning came with both being worn out but happier then they had been in a while.

Chaotic kept his word with playing with Moon until noon the next morning and then he had to kiss Luna goodbye and Moon as well. neither filly nor mare wanted him to go, but they knew he had to. even the young filly knew that her dad had to help ponies. she didn't know the entire story, but she knew enough to keep her happy that her dad came home, even while helping other ponies. Luna knew he had to keep ponies safe from the new tyrant and only wished she could help, rather then being useless. But Chaotic was more than happy that he still got to see them and that they were far from Heart and safe as long as he played along. now to see what Heart would want of him for the day.

Chaotic walked into the castle. He was about to the enter the throne room when he bumped into Lachrymose. Sun Petal had been walking next her but stopped in time to not make contact. Lachrymose had been caring something and they fluttered to the ground.

Chaotic was a proper gentle colt and attempted to help pick up the photos. Lachrymose quickly scuttled to grab them all before Chaotic could. She was too slow and Chaotic managed to pick one up. He looked at the picture and was confused why Lachrymose was carrying them around. It was a picture of Fleur De Lis posed to show a rather private area. Except it wasn't actually Fleur De Lis. It was Lachrymose but no pony could tell from the angle of the photos.

"I would ask, but you being a changeling and I already know which way you both swing...I am not going to ask any questions. I will just advise you to not carry these so loosely from now on. don't need others who would spread rumors to see them. now I am going to act like I never saw or knew you two had these. have a nice day you two."

Lachrymose's face burned with embarrassment. Petal looked at her she tried to help her avoid the awkward conversation. "How about you go deal with those photos while I talk to Chaotic." Lachrymose nodded and ran into the throne room. Petal looked at Chaotic. "I have something to ask you before you go talk to Heart. You may decline if you please. I believe we may have a traitor among us and I want you to weed him out."

Chaotic was confused at first but then shrugged. "What does Heart think about it? I'm not dumb enough to piss him off twice in as many days. if he's ok with and asks me to do this as well, then yes I will weed out this so called traitor."

Petal didn't like Chaotic's response. "Heart doesn't need to ask you. I am. Heart has more important things to personally ask you for help. It doesn't matter because Heart wanted me to see if this pony was a traitor. I wanted your help because you fit the part. All I want you to do is pretend to be resisting Heart and see If Lead Road will join you. Simple. Now are you going to do it or am I going to have to waste Heart's time?"

"Wait, it is Lead? You think Lead is a traitor? I will see what I can do but if Heart ends up not liking what I find out or that I did it. its on your head not mine. so where is he and when do you want me to test him?"

"Yeah it is Lead. He will be in Ponyville. He usually stays there and organizes that branch. As I said before just tell him you are actually against Heart and want him to help you, improvise. You are a smart pony I am sure that you will do just fine. Tell me if he tries to join your false crusade."

Chaotic nodded. "fine I will test him then and see how strong his loyalties are."

As Chaotic walked into the throne room with Petal he heard Lightning talking to Lachrymose. "Thanks." He examined them. " Wow! These are great. I thought you said no to this idea?"

Lachrymose felt a little awkward giving them to Lightning. "You can thank Petal for these. Don't ask for such a thing again. You are lucky to get this much. I'm not some toy to trick ponies with."

Heart ignored the changeling. "Hello Chaotic. Where have you been?"

"I was spending time with my wife and child."

"I can't say I blame you. I was rather upset yesterday. It was probably for the better that you were not around. I do want to thank you for calming and talking to Scoot. You did help me. At the same time you also could have prevented the whole ordeal by keeping your mouth shut. I don't want to linger on that though. I would like you to tell me how this potion works" Heart levitated the bottle and shook it to make sure Chaotic knew what he was talking about.

Chaotic wanted to rebound with "ya and if you told her none of it would have happened!" but figured better on and just shook his head before answering. "That one will only work for Three days after you take it so that's your time zone. drink the entire thing an hour before you plan to do anything and you should be fertile enough to produce a healthy foal. and before you ask me why only three days, it was all I could do in short notice. the permanent one I was planning to start tonight will take a full month to finish. and you wanted it sooner than that so ya got the three day version for now. anything else you wanted to know?" Chaotic had spoke in a calm almost pleasant tone the entire time. he knew he saved Hearts ass weather Heart wanted to admit it or not. besides he had no reason to be mad or upset with Heart at his moment. Chaotic just wanted to know what Heart would do now.

Heart didn't know if there was any special things he needed to be aware of. "So I just down the whole thing? No side effects. No drink with food or anything?"

Chaotic nodded. "Yep that's it. but you might want to eat something with it to settle your stomach and drink so you don't get dehydrated while you try. besides that just wait an hour for it to kick in and have fun after."

Heart looked at the bottle. It would make Scootaloo happy. This simple little liquid would make all the difference in the world to her. Heart found it funny and sad. He also thought about what Chaotic had done for him. "Thank you Chaotic. It may have not been the most pleasant of time when you first gave me this gift but I thank you none the less. You will cause my Scoot to be happy and by association have made me happy. You are a good pony."

Chaotic nodded. "I didn't get the name Chaotic Love for nothing. My methods may not always seem like a good idea at the time. but when they work out, it makes sure the relationship stays working for as long as the ponies live. so just like some might not see your plans as good right now, things should come into light after some time. and as I always say. anything for a friend. now if you will excuse me, Petal has asked me to do something. so I will be out of touch until I return. if you need me have (changeling's name here) call me. then when I get back I will work on the other potion for you. so you don't need me every time you want a kid. 'til then see ya later!" then Chaotic turned to leave with a smile knowing that Heart wasn't going to kill him but might actually like him more for it.

Chaotic flew to Ponivil from the edge of Canterlot. He might not mind the train, but flying was so much more fun and relaxing to him. and it took less time if he wanted to race himself for fun. so he was in Ponivill in less then two hours. then he found and landed outside the Lantern's Ponivil HQ. then he entered with a smile and found the closest pony he could find. "Excuse me, can you lead me to Lead Roads please?" the pony noticed Chaotic but didn't know how to act. he wasn't the kind any longer but he still was right next to Heart in the throne room. Chaotic saw the scared look in the pony's eyes and shook his head. "Don't worry about my rank, right now i am just a messenger so if you could lead me to him please?"

the pony calmed down and nodded then showed Chaotic to Lead's room where he had been staying. Chaotic knocked and then entered after he was told to enter. Lead had been writing something when he looked up from his desk and looked surprised at seeing Chaotic. "Hello Lead. I was wondering if we can go somewhere private and talk?"

Lead Road looked around the room. "Is this not private enough, and what do you want to talk about?"

Chaotic thought it best not to take any risks. "I would rather tell you after leaving."

Lead didn't necessarily see a need to leave but he didn't think that Chaotic would waste his time over nothing. "I have no pressing matters so we can go somewhere. I would like some fresh air. Does the park sound good to you?"

"That would be fine."

"Let's go then." The two left for the park.

Chaotic had seen this pony before but they didn't talk much. He found it odd that this was the pony under suspicion. This was one of Heart's top Beacons. It did not matter. Chaotic needed to do this either to get a ally or keep his cover. He had no other option. "How do you feel about Heart's take over?"

Lead Road's mind red flagged immediately. That was not a question to ask a Beacon. "Why do you ask?"

Chaotic acted very calm. "No reason really. Just was curious."

Lead wasn't sure if to trust this pony or not but he had already said something to Petal as well as Heart. "I don't agree with taking down the old rulers. I think Heart is a great pony but what he did was not right. He should have became a ruler the way Twilight did. Through hard work and dedication."

Chaotic had to hide a wicked smile. this pony could be an ally after all. but he couldn't break either of their cover. Chaotic knew he was being watched so had to think this through. "So would you ever betray Heart?" the Look Chaotic gave Lead was one that he hoped would get the message of being watched through to him.

Lead looked at Chaotic with distain. "Are you stupid?"

Chaotic hid a smirk. "not last time i checked. but you can't actually say that you wouldn't go against him if you saw what he was doing was against what you think. now can you?" Chaotic had put a slight emphasis on can't to make a point that he hoped the writer would catch onto.

Lead didn't catch on to what Chaotic was saying. "I know what he does and he does it for the better of every pony." Lead lost motivation in his words. "He is just a little drastic…"

Chaotic had to stop from shaking his head but did roll his eyes. "Do you really believe that killing ponies like a psycho is really better for ponies?" Chaotic had added disgust in his voice hoping to hit a nerve in this pony that he actually starting to like.

Lead didn't want to listen. "He does it for all of the good ponies. He only kills the evil ponies."

Chaotic was starting to feel hopeful that this pony was going the way he needed. "And what if i told you he was worse for ponies then he was good for them? what then?"

"How is destroying the evil in this world so that the others can live happily worse than the alternative?"

Chaotic smiled wickedly. "Destroying simple evils causes more and worse ones to develop. let alone all That Evil is doing is getting rid of the competition so he can rule any way he wants."

Lead did not believe that Heart was trying to control Equestria for himself. "Heart is not doing this for himself. He is doing it for all of us. He wants the best for every pony."

"every pony as long as he's in control. but I can see I wont get through to you, just like his other brain washed lackeys." Chaotic watched to see his reaction hoping it showed loyalty to Heart without thinking about it.

Lead didn't appreciate the insults and came back with his own. "Ok OLD KING. What have you ever done for me? What have you done for your subjects? We Lanterns have been picking up the scraps for years now. We tech ponies. We take the degenerates and wash outs and make them into good strong citizens. What did you do as king? Fuck Luna and save a bunch of bugs."

Chaotic couldn't help but smile at the attack. He made the decision to stop recoding his memory for Petal after that moment and speak truthfully. "Ya those parts were fun, that's for sure. but you know what else was fun, stopping wars with both the dragons and the griffons so that many ponies didn't loose their lives fighting a war that not many would have survived if any. oh! and stopping the monsters of the Everfree and underworld from killing the ponies in the towns across Equestria. you know those like Ponyville. Ya I'm sure you know the place. and even with being such a great killer, oh i mean great pony now, im sure you and those other Lanterns would have been some of the first to go since you were so close to the forest."

" but hey its none of my business telling the all powerful and in control Lanterns that even ponies that aren't lanterns are important. and they could either make your lives better or worse, weather you knew they were there or not. something you didn't know was where the food to that home for the homeless came from. the one that you personally and many other went to eat when you weren't to stubborn on pride to eat at. ya that old place along with many others were given food from the stores of Canterlot castle. I know i Never did anything for you or any other pony as a worthless ruler but at least i didn't kill innocents because i thought they were a treat. nor did i let those that followed me kill foals for asking questions that they didn't even know they weren't supposed to ask. and if you don't believe me ask Petal what i mean. and if i pissed you off so much then make sure that Petal knows we talked and see what else she has to say on this used to be worthless king."

Chaotic gave him a nod to show that he meant the reporting him part then left with a frown. though that frown turned into a smile once Lead was out of site. _'I might have just saved a pony's life, and made an ally if I'm lucky enough. but enough for now. time to make a potion.' _Then Chaotic flew to Canterlot.

A stallion sat in the Canterlot Castle waiting room. He waited to be called back for his interview. The mare behind the counter called his name and told him where to go. He entered the room the mare had directed him to. It was well lit with a huge window on one side of the room. A unicorn mare in a suit sat at a large table with some papers in front of her. She motioned for him to sit. "Mister Decimal, I have read your résumé and you seem qualified for this position. I wanted to ask you a few questions before we hired you. Are you ok with this?"

The stallion sat down. "Yes ma'am."

The mare read off one of her papers. "Why do you want to be the castle's accountant?"

"Because I am excellent with numbers and feel that another pony would not be right for this position."

The mare raised an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't other ponies be right for the job?"

"Because other ponies make mistakes, I don't."

The mare thought he was a little cocky but liked the confidence. She continued with some basic questions that the stallion answered with ease. That is until the final question. "Are you a Lantern?" The mare knew the answer because the stallion was not wearing any kind of medallion but she wanted to see his response.

The stallion didn't know why that was a question. "No, but what does that have to do with anything?"

The mare ignored his question. "Why not?"

"Because I don't want to be part of some charity organization. Nothing in this world is free and I like to get paid for the work I do."

The mare put on a false smile and gathered her papers and put them in a folder. She levitated it beside her and stood up. "I'm sorry mister Decimal but I believe that you are not right for this position. Please look for work else ware."

The stallion became frustrated. "What? I am over qualified for this position. Why are you denying me?"

The mare kept calm. "You have the skills but I do not believe that you would fit in around here. You are too selfish."

"Since when does a me being selfish have anything to do with being good at my job!?"

"It doesn't but I will not have a lesser pony handling such important matters."

The stallion caught her words. "Lesser pony! Who are you to judge me like that?"

The mare rolled her eyes. "Leave now."

The stallion was pissed off now and was set on making a scene. "Not until you take back what you said. No pony talks to me that way."

The mare didn't care to deal with this. "Guards!"

Two ponies in armor walked through the door into the room. "Ma'am?"

"Escort mister Decimal here off castle grounds please."

"Yes ma'am." The guards grabbed the pony and proceeded to drag him to the exit. He hollered and fought on the way there but he was weak compared to the guards. All he did was annoy them. He screamed about how he was going to report her for biased and get her fired. He was silenced when one of the guards hit him along the head and knocked him out. The mare watched as they dragged the stallion away. "Thank you, he was becoming intolerable."

**A/N: So Chaotic broke the fourth wall. I have not edited out any scenes from DLB yet and I will not start now, even thought I kinda wanted to this time. Ehh whatever, if some one doesn't like it so be it. Someone might enjoy it. This was a so so chapter. Well I am happy to say that we are near finished with VV as a whole. So that means at some point we will be able to post more frequently. Cool right? Well 'til next time have a pleasant day/night. **


	24. Too much tension

**A/N: Hey guys and gals. I give you a little present today. Since we are so close to finishing I am going to release this chapter pre-completion. I am breaking the rules but whatever. I am excited. ~sci-fi**

Chapter 23:Too much tension.

Two ponies were walking down the street late at night. One a mare, one a stallion. Both were earth ponies. They were walking back from a late night Lantern skills class. They talked and laughed in the dark.

A few feet behind them were four ponies in dark clothing following them.

The stallion spoke to the mare. "Next week we are supposed to be learning cooking. I wonder what they will have us-" The stallion was cut off as a hammer hit him across the head. His friend screamed, shocked as blood flew onto her face. A pony tackled her to the ground. She tried to escape but after a few hits to the face with a hoof she was dazed. The four ponies finished the job by stomping the pair to death. The four ran off leaving the bodies on the side walk.

Chaotic Love had just landed when he saw to guards throw an unconscious pony off the steps of the castle. Luckily for that pony Chaotic used his magic to catch him before he hit the stairs. "What is the meaning of this kind of treatment? what did he do to deserve to be thrown out like trash?" The guard told him what happened and Chaotic was annoyed at the arrogance of the hiring pony. so he thought he would bring it up with Heart and see how it went. Chaotic teleported the pony to his home using a spell he knew and then walked into the thrown room. "Heart, I wish to speak with you. it is about some unfair treatment and plain discrimination within the hiring department."

Heart's Vision up from the document he was reading. "What is it now Chaotic?"

Chaotic shook his head at the response. "So it is ok now to just turn down a job offer and then beat up ponies because they are not lanterns?"

"What are you talking about?"

Chaotic shook his head. "For a ruler you don't know much about what goes on in your kingdom, or even your castle. The mare that held an interview, just a few minutes ago, turned down a new accountant. Now I don't mind that a pony doesn't get the job. but this isn't exceptionable. the only reason he was turned down, despite being over qualified and good at his job, was because he wasn't a Lantern. then when he tried to argue the fact she called the guards that knocked him out and were throwing him off the stairs of the castle as I arrived. first hurting him, even if he was upset and causing a scene was not called for. and second is prejudiced really ok in your ranks? I wish to know if, to you, it still doesn't matter if a pony is a Lantern as long as they are a good pony and in this case good at their job."

Heart didn't condone this behavior. "Lightning, go get this mare."

Lightning Hoof nodded. "Yes sir." He quickly rushed off to get the pony. After a few minutes of waiting Lightning escorted the mare into the throne room.

She bowed and addressed Heart. "Yes my king? Is there something you wish to see me about?"

Heart pointed to Chaotic. "Chaotic here has brought something to my attention. Is it true that you turned down a overqualified pony just because he wasn't a Lantern?"

The mare didn't like the position that Chaotic had put her in. She eyed him before speaking to Heart. "Yes I did sir."

"Explain yourself."

The actually had her own reasons. "I simple could not trust the pony. He is not one of us, who knows what he is like. He could be a thief for all we know. I need a pony I trust to handle such delicate matters as the castle's funding. I couldn't take that chance."

Heart shook his head in disapproval. "We don't do that. There is no need for discrimination against those who do not want to be Lanterns. As long as they are good at their job and follow the rules they can have the position. I want you to offer that pony the job back with an increased paycheck. And I do not want to hear about anything like this again. Do you understand me?"

The pony kneeled. "Yes my king, it will be done."

"Go then." The mare rushed off to correct her mistake. Heart turned to Chaotic. "Thank you for informing me. I do not support such actions."

Sun Petal walking into the throne room with Lead Road. Lead Road glared at Chaotic. Lead spoke to Heart in an elevated tone. "Chaotic is a liar and a traitor!"

Heart expression did not waver. "What makes you say this?"

"Because he tried to get me to turn on you. He came to Ponyville and started talking to me how you are wrong to kill ponies."

Heart smiled. "Glad to know you are still on my side Lead."

Lead was surprised by Heart's words. "He must be- What?"

"it was a test Lead. Chaotic was acting on my orders. You can calm down now."

Lead looked back at Chaotic. "You played me!"

"And you ended up winning the game, and the prize is your life."

The throne room doors burst open as six guards and a uniquely dressed unicorn mare came in carrying four ponies in chains. The ponies were bruised all over.

The unicorn mare wore black armor with purple outline. It made her stand out from the other guards with their gold armor. She addressed Heart. "How are you king Heart?"

Heart was interested in what the pony had brought him. "I am fine. How are you Crimson Wounds?"

This was the first time Chaotic had heard of the mare. It was not however the first time he had seen her. It took a minute to recall where he had seen her but he did place her face. It was the mare that publicly punished the criminals. She had a jet black coat with crimson stripes running down her legs. Her mane matched her stripes. She looked rather intimidating.

Crimson smiled. "I am doing well my king. I have just apprehended some rather despicable criminals."

Heart looked down at the bloody and bruised ponies. "Is there a particular reason that you bring them to me instead of punishing them yourself?"

Crimson talked in a sweet tone of deception. "I just thought that you would want to see these cuties and decide the punishment yourself. They are the first ponies to ever murder Lanterns just for being Lanterns."

Chaotic rose a brow and gave a sigh while shaking his head at the news and waited to see them suffer. he didn't want to see it but knew it was coming.

This caught Heart's attention. "They did what?"

Crimson looked into the eyes of the pony she had brought in. "This is a new one on me too. They openly admit to killing the two ponies we found last night. Some teenage ponies. A girl and boy. I bet they were so lively and full of energy before this one bashed their skulls in with a hammer."

Heart's rage showed it's ugly fangs. He got off his throne and went to the one that Crimson had pointed out. "Is this true? Did you kill those ponies just for being Lanterns?"

The stallion raised his head. He spoke in a weak tone. "Sure did you tyrant bastard."

Heart sneered. "I am glad you brought them to me Crimson. I do want to decide their punishment." Heart thought about it for a few moments. It didn't take him long to decide the punishment. "I think I will go with skinned alive in public. Make them a example."

Chaotic spoke without thinking for the first time in a while. "And every pony there sick and full of hate." Then he realized what he said and face hoofed.

Heart turned towards to Chaotic. "Is there something you want to say?"

Chaotic looked back at him with a blank face. "want to say or going to say?"

Heart was already not in a good mood. "I think either will piss me off so go ahead."

Chaotic could help but smirk a bit then hid it as he spoke. "Fine. then do you really think that will make ponies not want to kill Lanterns? and right after you said there shouldn't be prejudice to those who aren't and those who are? doesn't happen to sound like a hypocrite does it? ya they die, I get that fully, wont fight you on it or say otherwise. and heck I can agree with public death even. that might show them not to target any pony especially a Lantern. but going to that extreme will only cause them to hate you for showing no mercy and going to a sickening extent because you think more of your Lanterns then you do any pony else. and after the news spreads that you don't agree with that in hiring it will only make you look worse. but do what you want, as long as you know what the consequences are. which will be unrest, hate, and more deaths if not civil war. I don't agree with them either and I'm pissed that they would kill two teens just because they were Lanterns. they didn't deserve it, hence the death. but go all out and make it a horror show and you might unease a few ghouls of your own."

Heart was right about Chaotic's words pissing him off. "My Lanterns are a force for good. Killing them is worse than an average pony because they help others. So not only did these ponies kill two innocents they also hurt every pony that my Lanterns would have helped. They may have even killed more ponies. For killing my subjects they deserve death. For killing those who are good because they hate deserves more than death. There is no second chances for them. There is no sweet release. They get to suffer and have their loved ones watch."

"SO because YOU are "good" for everypony you are better then them and can kill and torture anyone you want? no not a dictator at all! and if we counted all the things that ponies could do before they did it you yourself could have been tortured and killed for all the ponies you have killed and tortured. but you were shown mercy and given a chance. then you betray those that trusted you. so what makes you any better then these poor fools?"

Heart was about to rebuttal but Petal did it for him. Chaotic hadn't been expecting it and Petal managed to landed a punch on his cheek. "Shut your muzzle!"

Chaotic's head barely moved but his eyes lit up with anger. Heart attacking him was one thing, but he was not about to be told anything by this colt murdering freak! Before Petal knew what hit her she was on her back feeling pain all over her body with Chaotic's hoof to her throat. "I WILL NOT TAKE ORDERS FROM A COLT MURDERING FUCK LIKE YOU!" Petal tried to move but was held in place as a shield appeared around the two of them so Chaotic could rip into her.

"I will not be spoken to like that from a mare that wont follow her own leaders rules! where is your mark? the mark for murdering innocents in cold blood? and before you lie that you haven't have you forgotten the colt that asked if it were possible that Heart could ever be wrong? the one you slowly and painfully crushed the skull of? and for what, because he asked a question that he didn't even know he shouldn't have! he was trying to learn! and you killed him like he was nothing but a flea that might touch your role models ass! so i will not be told anything from a pure hypocritical BITCH like you!"

Chaotic's shield was destroyed as Heart intervened. Chaotic was threw against the wall by a shockwave of Heart's magic. Chaotic received some scratches but not much harm. Heart stared at him with fiery eyes. "Don't ever touch my subjects! Or you will find yourself and you family in the same position as these four murderers."

Chaotic stood and sneered at him. "And you say you are a good and fair king. but yet you protect those that follow you and kill any you don't like. you heard what she did and you still stand at her side with not a word on her killing the future of pony kind. so if you want to let her roam free and kill of every foal that asks questions, then you might as well kill the entire pony race off now. you do what horrid things you want to, because you will anyway. no matter how stupid and cruel an idea it is. You do that and see who is right about what will happen. Now while you make yourself look like nothing but a monster in the eyes of any that will see or hear about this, i am going home to make sure that my little filly and nephew know better then ask anything that has to do with you. i would rather them be scared and know what you really are, then curious like they are now and killed slowly by that bitch for no other reason then they are trying to learn to grow and become productive ponies. since that colt was one of your damned lanterns and that's how she treated him. i don't want to think what you high and mighties will do to a non-Lantern child." Then Chaotic turned to leave this scene.

Heart grabbed Chaotic with his magic and turned Chaotic towards himself. Using his gained power he held Chaotic down in a sitting position. "YOU WILL SIT AND YOU WILL LISTEN! I will talk to Petal later for now I am going to talk to you. You say here and you say what a monster I am but you only dwell on the negatives I have to perform to gain the positives, Because of my actions there is little to no crime. Because of me schools are well funded and ponies that would normally be in narrow alleyways drinking there lives away are productive members of society. You fail to see the good that comes from my reign because you don't want to accept me as a leader. You are stuck in the past you fool. I am looking to the future. I realize that it will be rough for a while but once ponies see the good they will accept their bright future. You are an example of my mercy so don't sit there and say I am this cruel pony. I let all of the old rulers live even though they pose a threat to me. MY FIRST ACT AS RULER WAS TO SHOW MERCY! It seemed I was being cruel to the changelings but now that I have the opportunity they are starting to see that I care about them. You do no such thing. You hurt Petal not to correct her or for some greater good, you hurt her because of your anger and you will pay." Heart turned to Crimson. "Give me your blade." Crimson did as her leader asked. Heart made deep slashes on Chaotic's sides. It was painful but did no real harm , it was mostly for appearance.. His blood ran down his sides. Heart had enough of him and wanted him gone. "Show your family what happens to those who stop progress." Heart teleported Chaotic to Twilight's castle.

Chaotic just shook his head. "i will be glad when they are all dead. and you fucking moron i do see your good and told you i did. you are just fucking blind when it comes to your precious lanterns. and that will be your down fall." then Chaotic washed the blood away from his body and walked into the castle and up to Luna's room. he knocked and then entered. he saw that Luna was up and smiled. "Hello my love. it's good to see you again." Luna noticed him hiding his tone and his sides. "What happened? why are you here?"

Chaotic sighed knowing he couldn't hide anything from his lover and wife. "That fucker decided to skin ponies alive in public because they killed his Lanterns. I agreed they needed to die, but i didn't think showing them off would cause anything but hate to him and war in the long run. then his pet bitch hit me and i snapped on her. i barely hurt the stupid bitch but Heart stepped in and saved his little pet. even after he found out that she killed a colt for no reason. he says he won't hold his Lanterns higher then an normal pony and even gave a job that was denied to a non-lantern a few minutes before. then he wants to skin them because the ones they kiled were lanterns. He's a damned hypocrite and just wont admit it. and any who call him out get made an example of."

Chaotic showed his side to make his point and Luna gasped. "So from now on, i will and you will teach Moon and Illusion not to ask anything that has to do with those ponies no matter what it is. and you will have to stay away from those stupid lanterns so that you are all safe. if he wants enemies, that is the perfect way to do it. so please just be careful and safe my love." Chaotic had hugged and wa now wrapping himself around Luna to keep her calm. "Are you ok though?" Chaotic laughed lightly. "You know I have been through way more than that moron playing with knives."

Luna couldn't find it in her to even smile at her husband's playful tone. she couldn't find sleep that night, even with him by her side. and in the morning while he told Moon and Illusion to never ask questions about Heart or any lantern, she just looked on scared of what could happen. Then Chaotic was called back to the castle in Canterlot. Luna needed somepony to talk to. so she chose to speak to Twilight. "Oh hello Luna is everything ok? you look tired." Luna gave her a sigh as her answer and shook her head. "I couldn't sleep knowing what i do." then when Twilight answered Luna broke out crying and telling Twilight what had happened.

Twilight was shocked and saddened. "He is so much worse than i thought... and now it is putting Chaotic in danger... i am so sorry Luna." Luna just hugged her. "It is not your fault my dear friend. i just wish we could have stopped this before ponies had to die. but now all we can do is stick together and protect each other." Twilight agreed and hugged Luna back. "and stick together we will! until this is ended and every pony is once again safe."

**A/N: I want to have a formal thanks to DLB. He has been putting in some major work these last few chapters and they have turned out great. He is on a break and has a better chance to write versus I have classes and have to go to them and be tired when I come home and study on top of all that. So we have switched roles. At first he was in class and had to study and couldn't get anything done. Now that is me. It is pretty funny to me. Well I hope you liked the chapter. It was a little short but it had some major conflict in it. The question is will Chaotic live through this ordeal or will he just tip Heart off the edge and commit suicide by crazy ass unrightfully king. ~ sci-fi**


	25. For all the good done

Chapter 24: For all the good done.

Chaotic Love walked through the halls of Twilight Sparkle's castle. He planned on going back to Canterlot to see how Heart had dealt with Petal and the murderers but first he wanted to see how Twilight was coming with the spell to rid Heart of the windegos.

Chaotic Knocked on her door but revived no answer. so he cracked it open and spoke. "Hey Twi you in here?"

Chaotic slowly moved the door inch by inch. He peered in hoping that he was intruding on anything. When he finally opened the door enough he saw Twilight sitting in the middle of the room with her eyes closed and a wide smile on her face. Chaotic walked up to her and tapped her. "Twi?" That seemed to knock her form her trance. She blinked her eyes a few times and then realized who was standing in front of her. "Hello Chaotic. Is there something you need?"

"I wanted to know if you have had any progress with the spell. What were you doing? You were just sitting here looking happy as could be."

Twilight realized that it may have looked strange to any pony else. "I was reliving some memories. It is so much more vivid when I do it in my own mind. It reduces distractions."

Chaotic understood. "ah, that makes sense now. so might I ask what had you so happy? I still want to know about the spell, but that can wait. we haven't spoken or spent time together in a while. so what memory had you so happy if you don't mind me asking?"

Twilight was a little bit embraced to share what she really enjoyed but didn't think Chaotic would judge her for it. "Surprisingly enough it was one of Heart. When he was young, not now. I could sit and explain it to you but would you rather see it for yourself?"

Chaotic smiled and nodded. "Sure, if you wouldn't mind. I know a bit of when he was younger so it will be nice to know more of him when he was just a kid trying to find his way." Then Chaotic sat in front of her and waited for her to start the spell.

Twilight let Chaotic see into her mind. It was even more ironic since Heart actually altered this spell to make another pony enter the casters mind.

Chaotic was projected into a world of the past. He stood in the old library with Twilight. On the other side of the room was a clone Twilight along side four little ponies. Chaotic could easily tell who they were. Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and finally the pony that he had never seen as young, Heart's Vision.

Chaotic noticed something right away different about Heart. He was small, even for his age he was small. Chaotic saw why he was picked on when he was young. He seemed like such an easy target. The memory was not moving. Twilight was waiting to be sure that Chaotic was ready. He nodded triggering the memory.

Heart looked up to Twilight. "Twilight, Twilight! Look what I can do!" The pony was filled with energy and excitement. He turned to Scootaloo. "Are you ready Scoot?"

Scootaloo nodded. "Go ahead HV."

Heart's horn started to glow as he charged a spell. The spell launched from his horn and landed in Scootaloo's chest. Twilight was concerned at first but calmed down when she saw that Scootaloo was fine. Twilight looked from Scootaloo to Heart. "What did that do Heart?"

Heart smiled. "Show her Scoot."

Scootaloo returned the smile. She jumped in the air and started to fly. Twilight was surprised by this. "How did you…?"

Heart started to explain as he watched Scootaloo fly around with cheer. "It is part of my special talent. I can amplify pony's core. It isn't it great Twilight. I can help ponies use their power."

Twilight was happy for her student. "How long have you been working on this?"

Heart was a little embarrassed . "It took me a few months. It was just so hard to figure out. I didn't have any references or anything to really build off of."

Twilight was surprised it took Heart so long. He learned so many complex spells in short periods of time that she couldn't see him investing a few months of his time into a spell unless it was for a good reason. "Why did you make the spell? Why would you invest so much time into it?"

Heart looked up at the orange filly enjoying every second of her experience. Heart held a warm smile on his face. "I wanted to make her happy. I wanted to see my Scoot fly." Heart held no regrets for the time he had spent. In his mind every second of it was worth it just for a few minutes of Scootaloo's happiness.

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle ran around chasing Scootaloo around the library. Heart and Twilight watched them have fun.

The memory continued but Chaotic had trouble hearing it as the actual Twilight started to speak to him. "Heart use to only care about making other ponies happy. He didn't care about what punishing any. All he needed was a smile to make his day. It's like he took a page from Pinkie's book."

Chaotic smiled a sad smile. "Yes I wish I could have known this colt rather then the confused and frustrated one I first met. and even more then the one we know now." then his tone turned from hopeful to saddened. "It's ironic too... this gift he learned to make his one true love happy, turned into the one curse he put on my own love. its a true tragedy that one so filled with love, is cursed with something he never knew about or wanted. but at least he did find love in that filly and in his childhood, at least some of it. so what other memories do you have of him when he was like this? if you don't mind me seeing your student when he was a great force for pure good?"

Twilight sighed hearing Chaotic words. It made her sad seeing what Heart was and then seeing what he is. "There is so many memories that I could show you. All the times he came to my door happy and ready to learn. His accomplishments in magic. His love for learning. But I want to show something that at the time I was unsure how to react to. Looking back I should have done more than I did but you will understand when I show you."

Twilight brought up another memory. They were still in the library but Twilight was alone reading a book. Se started the memory and soon Heart ran in through the door, startling her. "Ahh! Heart you mustn't run in here like that."

Heart smiled as he huffed out of breath from his run. "I am sorry Twilight I just am excited. I think I am ready for your test so that I can learn the healing spell."

The purple unicorn gave him a questioning look. "Really? You think you are ready after such a short time?"

"Yes. I think I am ready."

"Well lets get started." Twilight levitated a desk and a stool to the center of the room. She placed several sheets of papers on it along with a ink well and quill. "Begin when you are ready."

Heart took his seat. He was sure he would pass. The test was very long in caparison to any test he had taken before. He wasn't expecting such a hard test. He finished and gave it to Twilight. After five minutes of grading Twilight gave her verdict. "I am sorry Heart but you failed."

Heart couldn't believe it. "What! I couldn't have failed. I know I can do it."

"You did fail. I think it is because you don't know the names. All was in order besides the names of bones and certain small organs."

"Please let me learn the healing spell I know that I can do it."

"I am sorry but I can't let you. It would be too risky."

"I can do it!" Heart wasn't letting his work be wasted. "I will prove it!" Heart grasped his left fore leg with his magic. He straightened it holding it out in front of him.

Twilight was confused and worried. "What are you doing?"

Heart used more of his strength. He could feel the massive amount of pressure on his limb. He wasn't backing out now. He made the last push. The lower half of his leg let out a wicked crack as it snapped. Both his leg and him screamed in pain.

"HEART! What have you done?!"

"Watch." He gained focus. Slowly his leg mended back together. It took so much concentration and power to fix it. He knew it takes a lot of energy to do it. The majority of unicorns don't have the knowledge or magical strength to perform such a strong healing spell. His leg was fully fixed and functional but the pain remained. His energy was sapped as well. His voice was weak. "I told… You I could… Do it." Heart fainted before hearing Twilights response.

Twilight rushed to Heart's side. The memory paused and the real Twilight turned to Chaotic. "He wanted so bad to learn so bad the he hurt himself just to prove it to me. I should have given him a more severe punishment."

"Let alone told your other rulers that there was a colt that was this good with magic and this reckless to boot. if you would have we might have been able to since the changes as they happened and could have possibly stopped him before this happened. and started to fix his problem before it caused this." Chaotic had been speaking more to himself than to her and was looking at the young Heart in front of him with a troubled look. "But we all make mistakes Twilight. heck I have made a few that almost killed my loved ones let alone this kingdom if I wouldn't had stopped it. so no none of us blame you for it. if we blame anyone we blame the Slican for their stupidity that caused this entire thing in the first place. if they had not wanted power for themselves then that kid full of hope and love would not have turned into this misguided and confused foal he is now. but now all we can do is deal with it the best we can. thank you for showing this to me Twilight. it might come in handy later on. and no not to use against him, but rather so I do not lose site of what he can be rather then what those creatures turned him into. so thank you for showing me a side of him that i had only heard rumors about."

Chaotic may not blame Twilight for Heart but she did blame herself. Unfortunately Chaotic found that out pretty quick when he felt her emotion. Twilight didn't use Heart's version of the spell and didn't think about what Chaotic would feel. He wasn't expecting it but he felt all the disappointment but not towards Heart, towards herself. Chaotic could feel the sadness that came from her sense of failure.

He felt it and knew it on a smaller scale but knew it. "Twilight Sparkle i will only tell you this once. do not blame yourself for what has happened to Heart. you did not make the Slicans do that spell. you raised him to be happy, to have fun, to love his friends, to learn as much as possible. in no way did you ever teach him about punishment, and you even taught him to be light on punishment by being so light on him. so any actions that he has made that brings anything but happiness to others or himself are the blame of the Windigos in side him. nothing and no pony else's fault. and sure as hell not yours. you were more of a mother to him then his own and tried to raise him the way he was. not the way those monsters inside him turned him into. and for a great long while he succeeded in learning from you and staying happy and doing nothing but helping others. but we all fall to our demons at some point. we can only hope that he can rise above them once again. and I have a good feeling that once Scootaloo has her foal that he will be less burdened by them. so either way, and no matter what you think. the only one that blames you, is you. and we are all our own harshest judges."

Twilight could see his reasoning but it didn't make her feel much better. She responded unenthusiastically. "Yeah. Let's go back to reality. This is just the past that I can't change. No matter how hard I try." Twilight stopped performing the spell shoving Chaotic out of her mind.

Chaotic had an odd feeling come over him upon reentering Twilight's room that he never actually left. It was similar to motion sickness. He assumed it was from the quick transition. He wanted to make Twilight feel better but there wasn't anything he could do. She had to decide herself that she wasn't to blame. He asked about the spell and if they would be able to remove the windigos. She explained that they were waiting for Zecora and she didn't know how long it would be.

Chaotic didn't like the answer but he wasn't going to fuss over something that he can't change. He needed to return to Canterlot. He needed to be there. Heart could do anything and without him there who knows what could happen.

Chaotic entered the throne room to see Heart with a slight smile on his face. It wasn't mischievous so Chaotic didn't worry about it. He wanted to know what actions Heart took after his input.

Heart didn't read minds but he didn't need to, to know what Chaotic was thinking about. "I did think on the information that you so charismatically delivered to me." Heart's voice was lathered in sarcasm.

Chaotic didn't care what Heart thought of his reaction to a cold blooded murderer. He didn't react to Heart's tone. He kept calm, wanting to learn what Heart did. "What actions did you take?"

Heart lost the sarcasm. "I locked Petal up after I explained my disapproval. She was very upset. She has a couple of weeks to think about her actions."

Chaotic wanted to sneer as such a measly sentence. He couldn't change much about it. "What of the murderers?"

Heart had not listened to Chaotic's advice. He actually made the punishment worse. "I had them skinned just as I said but I did add a little twist." Chaotic didn't like the sound of that. "The bodies were properly disposed of but their skins. A pony might forget if not reminded what happens to those we oppose good. Their skins now hang in a case outside Canterlot police headquarters, as a reminder to what happens to those who would destroy the light."

"Ya they are given a sentence worse then death if they don't like a Lantern. great way to get other to see you as good. you do a bad thing we raise the stakes and make you pay much more. ever hear the phrase two wrongs don't make a right? or in this case a wrong and a fuck up don't make a good thing?" Chaotic had taken his normal place and didn't even waist time looking at Heart while he did. then he just sat there shaking his head and looking forward waiting to be yelled at, when anyone with a heart would know he was right.

Heart sneered at Chaotic. "Your ignorance grows tiresome. I make an example of a few ponies now and later I don't have to kill more. Those ponies deserved their punishment. Any who would hurt the ponies trying to help do. I won't let the hateful, evil ponies ruin it for the others. In time ponies will realize that I am here to help, to bring happiness."

Chaotic thought to himself. _'you can't bring happiness by giving pain.' _but he kept his mouth shut after rolling his eyes and shaking his head. He was done with trying to show Heart what actually wisdom was. his head was to thick and heart to small. "What ever you say." the tone was neutral, no matter how much disgust was behind the thoughts.

Heart saw his reaction but didn't care. _'He won't understand until he sees it for himself. Luckily I will show him'_

Earlier that day.

Scootaloo happily opened the doors to the throne room. It seemed she had caught Heart at a good moment. No pony was around besides Lightning Hoof and the guards. Lachrymose was sitting next to Lightning but she didn't seem to happy. She had a frown on her face and was lost in her own thoughts. Scootaloo wondered what she was down about but she didn't have time to ask. She flew up to Heart and landed on the side of his throne. It put Heart in an odd position where he could keep sitting with Scootaloo's hind legs in his face or sit back in another awkward position with his hind legs hanging off the edge of the seat. He decided to lay back sense he thought that was what Scootaloo wanted him to do.

Sure enough as soon as he did she slid down into his lap. She wrapped her for legs around his neck. "Hey sweetie." Scootaloo gave him a kiss.

Scootaloo didn't normally didn't visit him during work and Heart found it suspicious. "I'm not complaining but what are you doing here?"

Scootaloo tried to play innocent. "I just wanted to see my strong, dependable, handsome, amazing, and generous stallion."

Now Heart knew something was up. "Ok I never get that many compliments. What do you want?"

Scootaloo gave up. "I want some money to go out and have some fun with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle."

"They're here?" Heart had not been told about them coming.

"Not yet. Their train will be here in a few minutes. Can I get a little spending money? It has been so long since I have just gone out and have fun with them."

Heart didn't see any harm in it. "I guess. You know all the information for my account. Have fun and tell them I said hi."

Scootaloo hugged Heart. "Thank you, I love you."

"Love you too."

Scootaloo left for the train station. She waited for her old friends. The two arrived together. Sweetie had been in Ponyville visiting Rarity. She had to take the train back through Canterlot so she talked Apple Bloom into coming and seeing Scootaloo.

Apple Bloom had traded her bow for her own stetson just like her sister. The one she wore was lighter than Applejack's. It was closer to her coat color.

Sweetie Belle wore some fancy shades but other than that they hadn't changed over the years much. Sweetie now had a little pink heart as a cutie mark and Apple Bloom had an apple. Scootaloo remembered when Sweetie had first gotten her cutie mark. Heart's Vision wouldn't stop with the cheesy jokes about how it wasn't her cutie mark it was just a tattoo dedicated to him.

Scootaloo greeted her friends with a group hug. "how have you two been?"

Sweetie responded first. "I have been doing swell."

Bloom followed after Sweetie. "Same here. How have ya'll been?"

Scootaloo was happy to see her friends. "I have been fine. Heart says hi. So is there anything you two want to do specifically?"

Sweetie looked to Bloom. "I don't know about you but I would like to rest for a minute." Sweetie turned to Scootaloo. "Do you know anywhere we can get a nice cup of tea?"

Apple Bloom wanted to laugh. She acted so much like Rarity now. The way she held herself. The way she walk and talked. "Are you going to add a darling to that sentence?"

Sweetie shook her head. "Are you going to dye that hat a few shades darker?"

They weren't being mean to each other. They were just teasing each other. Scootaloo laughed. "You two are different than your sisters in so many ways. There is a café I know. We can stop by there and get a drink."

Bloom was concerned. "Is there something there that I will drink?"

"They have more than just tea. I'm sure they have something." The three made it there and claimed some seats outside in the bright and sunny day. Scootaloo had enough money on here to cover there orders but would have to stop by the bank to get more for any activities they would want to do later.

Sweetie talked to Scootaloo between the sips of her tea. "How are you and Heart?"

Scootaloo had not told them anything about trying for a kid. "Well… We are trying for kid currently."

Sweetie smiled happy for her and was going to say something kind but was interrupted by Bloom who recoiled at hearing it. "Really!? Darn it Scootaloo it is bad enough that you are already married before us but now your gonna have a kid? I thought that you would want to do something adventurous before you settled down. Where is that restless pegasus spirit?"

"Yeah when I was young I wanted to go there and here doing this and that but these days I don't want to. I want to be home with my husband and I want to have a family. I want to have Heart's foal. I'm not saying that I never want to go on vacation. I still want to see the world but I want to do it with my family."

Sweetie had her own concerns as well. "I won't make any choices for you but do you ever…" Sweetie wasn't sure if to say her thoughts. She had already started, she needed to finish. "Do you ever wonder if you were with the right pony?"

Scootaloo didn't jump to conclusions. This was her friend and she must mean something different than how it sounded. "What do you mean Sweetie?"

Sweetie had to say something about Heart. "I mean are you sure that Heart is the one for you?"

"What's wrong with Heart?" Scootaloo became defensive over her husband.

"Ever since he has become king, Equestria has been… different. Are you sure that he was the right choice?"

"What are you getting at Sweetie?"

Sweetie heard the anger in her friends voice. "What he is doing. The new laws, the new punishments. You can see that they are wrong can't you?"

Scootaloo didn't know what Sweetie was talking about. Majority of the time Scootaloo was isolated from the outside world. She was not exposed to Heart's actions beside the ones directed to her. "I am sure that whatever Heart is doing, it is for the better."

Sweetie didn't want to fight with her friend and dropped the subject. "What are we going to do today?"

Scootaloo was surprised about the rapid change but she no more wanted to have a bad time than Sweetie did. She acted like nothing happened. "Still haven't decided. I would like to stop by the bank so I have some spending money. After that we can figure it out." Scootaloo spent the day with her old friends and had a fun time. Nothing dramatic happened and Scootaloo was glad to see her friends.

Somewhere else in Canterlot another was not having fun. A small filly was backed against a wall as two of her classmates toyed with her.

"Come on wheezy, aren't you having fun?" The colt made fun of the filly because asthmatic. Unlike the filly the colt had a friend next to him adding to the filly's torment.

The unicorn filly's emotions ran high and her body reacted. She was finding it harder to breath as her wind pipe closed. She levitated her inhaler to her face about to prevent her attack.

The bully smacked her inhaler away. It skidded across the stone. The big earth pony blocked the filly from retrieving it. "No, no, You are going to stay right here."

The filly pleaded in gasps. "I…need… it."

The bully didn't care. "You can get it after. First you need to bow."

"What?" Filly could feel her throat closing. A timer ticking down.

The bully stood tall in a heroic stance, opposite of his nature. "Bow and say I am best pony."

The filly didn't want to do it but she needed her inhaler. She began to bow. The bully was shoved away from her along with his buddy. The colt turned to see who had ruined his fun. He was surprised to see three ponies blocking his path to the filly. A fourth was giving the inhaler back to her.

The bully's face became red with anger. "Who do you think you are? This is none of your business, so just turn around and I will forget this happened." The bully was larger than any of the ponies individually. He abused this power that had gone to his head.

A pegasus colt answered him. "No. You will walk away and leave this girl alone."

"Then you will join her." The bully stepped forward as if to fight in an attempt to scare them. He stopped when the group of ponies simple looked at him with eyes of determination.

The group's leader spoke calmly but with authority. "Walk away."

The bully and his companion didn't think it was worth the trouble. "Whatever." He turned, leaving the group.

They watched to make sure the bully left. The filly had calmed down now and thanked her heroes. "Thank you all."

The colt that had spoken for the group responded. "No problem. We will try to make sure that he doesn't bother you again."

The filly was grateful but curious. "I would like that but why did you help me?"

The colt smiled. He tapped a medal necklace around his neck. "We are Lanterns, we are suppose to help any pony in need and looked to me that you were sure in need."

The filly was new to public school. She was home schooled before and didn't get out much. She had not heard of the Lanterns. "Lanterns?"

"Yeah, It's kind of like a club. We do our best to help everypony and we spend our time learning."

The filly like to learn but what appealed to her was that she wanted to be these ponies friend. "Can I join?"

"Sure, we accept any pony willing. All you have to do is sign up and follow the guidelines. We are going to our evening classes anyway. If you would like we can walk with you."

"No thank you. I have to get home. I will go by sometime but it is late."

The colt understood. "See you later than."

The Lanterns and filly separated. The Lanterns gained a member in the act of kindness.


	26. Threats for everypony!

Chapter 25: Threats for Everpony!

Sun Petal sat in a cell in the Canterlot Castle dungeons. She paced back and fourth in frustration. _'That fucking alicorn. First he disrespects Heart and then he gets me in this shit.'_

One of the guards spoke through the iron bars of her cell. "Pacing a hole in the floor won't help you Petal."

Petal looked at the guard. "Ha ha, very funny. Go do something else please. I'm not going to try to escape. I will not defy Heart's will."

The guard did as she said. She may have been in a cell but she still outranked him and when she was out could do anything she wanted to him.

"Thank you." She continued her pacing. _'I think I will give him something to think about when I'm out.'_ Petal spent the two weeks in her cell thinking.

When she was released there was no restrictions placed on her. Everything went back to normal for her.

In Ponyville Illusion and Moon Love sat in Cheerilee's class. When Heart took over they could no longer stay in Canterlot. Their parents didn't trust Heart to keep his word and had them start going to the local school. Cheerilee looked her class over with a smile.

Cheerilee cleared her throat gaining her students attention. "As of new adjustments we must talk about charity and being a good pony. Today we have a guest to talk to you all about it. Give a warm welcome to Sun Petal."

Sun Petal entered the classroom with a smile.

Cheerilee told her class to behave for Petal and that she would be back later. She left Petal with her students.

Petal scanned the class looking for two particular ponies. She spotted Moon Love and Illusion. Petal's smile became a little wider and more sinister. It quickly vanished and was replaced with a happy, peppy tone. "As Ms. Cheerilee stated I am Sun Petal. I took time away from Canterlot to come visit you special ponies, and tell you about your duty as citizens." The young ponies didn't know what she was talking about. "I can see that you may not understand my meaning, it's ok, this is new to most of you."

Petal kept her happy attitude. "Each of you are very special and hold great potential. You can do anything with your lives. Heart's Vision is trying his best to make it to where you have all the opportunity you could ask for. There is something you need to do in return though. He doesn't ask much, all you need to do is be upstanding ponies."

A colt raised his hoof. Petal nodded, giving him permission to talk. "how do we do that?"

Petal had expected this. "Just be good. Look to the Lanterns. They can be your guides to being a jut pony. Be kind, generous, loyal, honest. That is the sum of your requirements. Lanterns are held to a higher standard but you are not. At the end of the day you want to be able to say that you have no regrets. You need to be honorable. Have the ability to hold your head up high, to sat you gave it your all."

Petal had an experiment. "Everypony group up. We are going to have a little activity."

The ponies did as she said. Several groups formed of different sizes. Petal expected as much so she wasn't disappointed. "Now everypony tell me why you grouped with who you did." The ponies didn't expect to be questioned on what group they picked. They one by one explained why they chose the ponies they did.

Petal listened to the responses. Most had grouped with their friends. "Why didn't you all just make one big group? You could have done so. Then your group would be more capable. All of you are on the same team. Everypony has to work together, if they do than all of you win."

Petal continued to talk about the rights and wrongs. She was there all day and was responsible for dismissing the class. She told them to leave. Most ponies made it out but as illusion and Moon walked past her she stopped them. "I want you two to do me a favor. When you get home tell your parents I said hello."

Moon had never seen this pony before today. "You know our parents?"

"Yes I do little filly, and tell them that no pony is untouchable." Petal rubbed Moon's head and pushed her out the door.

Moon shrugged it off as she went home. When she got there she was greeted with a hug and kiss from her loving mother.

Luna smiled down at her child. "How was your day sweetie?"

Moon was usually excited to tell her mother about her day but today she hesitated.

Luna was concerned. "What is it?"

"Well, there was another pony teaching us today. She wasn't bad, it was odd having another teacher there. She told me to say hi to you."

"Who was the pony?"

"Her name was Sun Petal, she also told me to say that no pony is untouchable? I don't understand what she meant."

Luna's eyes lit up with concern. The thought of that murderer being so close to her baby sent adrenaline coursing through her body. Her instincts screamed for her to hide her child away but her mind knew better. She needed to talk to her husband about this before doing anything drastic.

Moon looked up at her mom, who was staring off into the distance trying to tink of what to do. "Are you ok mommy?"

Luna snapped from her trance. "I'm just fine. How about you go play for a little bit. I need to go do some things."

"Ok mommy."

Luna ran to find Sunny, and found her in the book store in Ponyville. "Sunny! I need you to tell Chaotic to talk now, please." Sunny had jumped at the sudden voice but calmed when she saw it was Luna. but the scared look on her face made her not feel so easy. "Sure lets head to the castle now, I'll tell him on our way." Luna nodded and started to trot back to the castle. "Thank you!"

the two got to the castle and found Chaotic sitting in the room looking worried. "Sunny said you looked scared so I showed up here, what's up?" Luna ran and hugged him tightly. "that monster Petal came to Moon's school and told her to say hi to us. and that no pony is untouchable...what are we going to do?" Chaotic's face turned to rage but he stayed calm. "She will die when this is over. but for now come with me. I know just how to keep her and illusion safe." then Luna let go of him and the three of them went outside. Sunny just followed in case she was needed, and she was used to babysitting Moon and Illusion so she cared for the kids. so she was going to help make sure they remained safe.

Chaotic whistled loudly and waited before a thunderous charge could be heard followed by triple howl. then after a couple more minutes of waiting Cebby came running to them. Chaotic jumped up and hugged the big dog happily. "good to see ya boy. how are you doing?" Cebby hugged back happy to see his adopted dad again. "I am doing well. staying away from town andthose stupid lanterns, besides that making sure the castle is safe. but why are you here and calling me? do you need me to do something else?" Chaotic nodded and told Cebby about Petal. he was surprised to hear that nice filly had turned so evil.

"So what do you need me to do? watch Moon and Illusion?" Chaotic nodded. "Around the clock for the most part make sure they get to and from school safe and are safe in school. then if they go out and play, be with them. Petal still sees you as a puppy. so I am hoping she wont try anything with you around. that and your collar wont stop you from hurting any that try and hurt them. even if it is Petal. he only wanted you not to cause him problems. so it will let you protect them without interfering. even if it is his second in command. It is a loop hole i plan to use to protect them. so do you mind?" Cebby shook his head. "Anything for you and them. and always thinking ahead like the leader you are. it will be done."

Chaotic nodded with a smile. "thanks son. and if they ask why just let them know I asked you for their safety. they should be fine with it anyway, but just in case. and I will have Luna tell them why later. but for now i have to return to the castle. so see you both soon." then Chaotic kissed Luna, thanked Sunny, and hugged and thanked Cebby before teleporting off.

Lightning Hoof stood in front of Heart's Vision speaking with respect and concern. "Sir, I have some items of interest I wish to speak to you about." Lightning noticed Chaotic was not by the throne. "Where is the old king?"

Heart showed no emotion. "He is dealing with some family troubles I think. Don't mind him just tell me what you want."

"I don't think that ponies are viewing the Lanterns for what they are. I think they are starting to fear us."

"Why do you say so?"

"Because when I go anywhere they watch me like a criminal. Some straight up leave the area. I think we can fix this pretty easily. I can start putting up posters, that show our true colors. I could also start having certain Lanterns to go out and speak to ponies to help our reputation. All I need is some funding."

Heart trusted Lightning to get it done. Lightning wasn't the one to usually take care of matters such as these but if he thought he could do it Heart wouldn't stop him. "You will get it. Have some costs put in writing and I will approve it."

"Will do."

A pony delivered Heart a large stack of papers. Most was mail, the mail varied from some pony insulting Heart for his take over to Lanterns thanking him for changing their lives, or documents that need to be approved to be disapproved. Some were appeals that need to be decided. Some ponies suggested that he have a secretary to sort his mail but heart refused. He wanted to personally take care of these matters. He wanted to read the words the ponies wrote. It would not be justice for them to write to him and have some other pony read and respond.

He sometimes began to regret that decision when he had ridiculous amounts of mail. He still stuck to it though. Heart opened a letter that caught his attention as he read.

'_Dear Heart's Vision, I am happy to inform you that your rule will come to an end long before you can grow old. I know because I will end it. Start counting your days false king, because the clock is ticking. I will smile has your precious Lanterns crumble. I Hope you die a slow and painful death. _

_Your defeat, Revenge'_

Heart stared at the paper with anger. Lightning raised a brow. "Is something wrong Heart?"

"Yes, very much so. It seems that somepony thinks that I do not deserve to be king and think they will change this."

Lightning laughed. "Really? It would take an army to just take you down. And it would take multiple to take me down." The cocky stallion was more or less trying to joke with Heart.

Heart didn't laugh but it did improve his mood a little, it didn't show. "That may be true Lightning but ensure that Scootaloo is protected. I don't like taking risks."

"It will be done."

Heart didn't think more of it and handled his daily duties. The night came and he drifted into sleep with a twinge of fear knowing he would have nightmares.

_Heart stood in Ponyville, in the schoolhouse. It was his memory of his first day at school. He relived Diamond Tiara making fun of him and Cheerilee siding with her and not him. He didn't enjoy the memory but something new appeared. A new pony formed from the floor. He could not tell who it was. The pony was not solid. It wavered and appeared to be made of fog or mist. _

_It spoke in a whisper that was almost unheard. The whisper didn't make one distinct voice. It was like three ponies talking all at once. "Do you see your failure?"_

_Heart heard the pony but he didn't know what it was talking about. "My failure, what do you mean? All that happened was that bitch Tiara was mean and then Cheerilee made a mistake." _

_The mist pony smiled. "Oh it is not that simple. You words are true but what you fail to see is your weakness. You sit idle and take no action. You fail. You are weak. You need to take action. You needed to stand up for yourself and not let others tread on you."_

_Another memory played out. It was off Fire Flash burning. A act that Heart remotely regretted because it was an emotion flare. He did think that Flash needed to be dealt with. _

_The mist pony spoke. "A success. The first moment you said no. The moment when you stood up and showed your power, your greatness."_

_Heart shook his head. "No. This was an act of rage. I could have dealt with this without a loss of life. I was young and so was my brother." _

_The mist pony grew angry. "You are wrong! This was the only way. The scum must die! The weak must be purged. You must show your strength so the pure can see and follow. You must rid this world of those that would hurt you. The greedy, selfish, worthless ponies that want to see you fail." _

"_I don't need to kill to show strength. I can do it be showing mercy. I can be better than those greedy ponies. I can show them their errors and make the world better without the death." _

"_NO you can't! They will ALWAYS be the way they are. They must DIE! They will lie and cheat and do what they always do. They will hurt the innocent so they may gain. The innocent will pay because you fail to do what is needed." _

_Heart raged. "I will not fail! I will always do what is right!"_

_The mist pony shifted to inched away from Heart's face. He stared into the pony's non existent eyes. "Than stop being weak and rid us of this sickness. Take the lives of those who bring us pain." _

Heart woke up. Scootaloo was already awake. Heart looked at her laying next to him. "Did I wake you up?"

Scootaloo had said yes to that almost every morning now. Today was different. "Surprisingly no. You didn't… well, freak out. You just had a odd look on your face."

Heart was happy it wasn't his fault. "What kind of face?"

"Like this." Scootaloo stuck her tongue out and made the dumbest face she could.

Heart scoffed. "Starting the day off strong aren't we?"

Scootaloo quit making the face. "You shouldn't make stupid faces while you sleep. That is your problem."

"Come here." Heart quickly shuffled his body close to her's and grabbed hold.

Scootaloo recoiled. "Ah, your cold! Why are you so cold?"

Heart backed off and looked at himself. "I don't know…"

Scootaloo waved her hoof. "Do one of your little warmth spells. Until then you keep your icy hooves off me."

"You are a real picky, you know that right?"

Scootaloo spoke boldly. "I only want the best, that's why I have you."

Heart smiled. Scootaloo always made him happy. She never made him feel bad about himself unless he messed up. He chuckled. "Thanks, Give me a minute and I will be nice and warm for you."

**A/N: I know that this chapter was kinda "ehh" It was kinda short too. I have been pretty busy trying to manage my life, sorry. I finally go on break from school and stuff just comes tumbling down around me. Well I will do my best to make next chapter worth while, and I don't think yall will be disappointed. It should be a really nice chapter.**


	27. Families

**A/N: We are officially done. We completed the final chapter and I will be posting every day. I have already been doing that but whatever. Just know that there is an end in site and you don't have to worry about delays. This chapter is pretty good. You know what. If some one reviews today I will post an additional chapter either after I see the review that day or the next. So If some one reviews on this chapters post date than I will gift everyone with one chapter early. It is set to accept guest reviews so there is no excuse. It is ultimately up to you. We appreciate your support. ~ sci-fi**

Chapter 26: Families.

Heart's Vision sat on his throne and spoke to Chaotic Love. "Did your troubles yesterday come to a happy ending?"

Chaotic hid all emotion as he spoke. "It was resolved to a point. and provisions are in place so it will do for now. thank you for asking."

Heart wanted Chaotic's thoughts on yesterday's news. "I never told you because you were gone and it slipped my mind. Yesterday I received a letter. It was not my usual mail. It was a pony promising to destroy my rule and they referred to themselves as revenge. Thought that you would want to hear about that."

"Stupid. I doubt they are any real threat but I would keep your security around Scootaloo." Chaotic looked forward without changing his emotions at all as he spoke.

"I already increased her security. Even if this pony is just trying to pull my chain. I don't risk my family."

Heart turned away from Chaotic quickly as the throne room doors burst open. A orange blur hurled towards Heart. He had no time to react as Scootaloo grabbed hold of him and carried him into the air. She happily kept yelling. "We did it! We did it! We did it!"

Heart chuckled at the mare. "Whoa now, what are you talking about?"

Scootaloo had the widest smile on her face. "I'm pregnant Heart. We finally did it. We will have a foal."

Heart was still being held in the air. Scootaloo slowly lowered him. Heart had mix emotions. He was extremely happy at seeing Scootaloo in such a good mood but he also felt pressure in his chest from thinking of the responsibility. He didn't let it show and put on a half smile. "That's great sweetie. This is amazing."

Sun Petal congratulated Scootaloo. "That is awesome Scootaloo! What do you think it will be?"

Scootaloo couldn't stop smiling. "It is too early to tell anything but I hope it is a boy. I want it to be like my wonderful husband."

Chaotic smiled happily for the mare. "Congrats you two! glad to see everything worked out. make sure Luna and Celestia know when the baby shower is, they love that kind of stuff. and I'm sure they will have tips to help if you want." Chaotic chuckled lightly at the thought.

Heart didn't like the idea but Scootaloo had a different opinion. "That would be great! I always thought Moon and Illusion were so cute and well behaved. And Heart's always talked about how much of a responsibility a child is. Maybe you two should exchange advice as well." Scootaloo turned to Petal. "Can you help me with some planning?"

Petal was cheerful. "I would love to. Follow me, don't want to disturb the others." Petal left with Scootaloo and Lachrymose followed Petal.

As soon as they left, Heart lost his false mood. He sighed while looking at the ground. "Shit."

Chaotic couldn't help but laugh lightly. "Oh relax, I know you don't want my advice but its not as hard to be a dad as everyone thinks at first. just care about them and pay attention and you will be fine." then he got slightly serious. "Just don't let your fears hurt them as much as they hurt you."

Heart looked at with Chaotic with fiery eyes. "I will never let my weakness hurt my family. Don't ever think that I would."

Chaotic frowned and looked him in the eyes. "Then what did you just do there? I gave you simple advice to think about and you think I am accusing you of attacking your family. what I meant was just that. don't let your own worries or insecurities end up hurting them. and it doesn't have to be you hurting them because of your weak spots. so don't act like I'm evil when I'm trying to help you with your fears of being a father. its hard work, and you will screw up! everyone does, but its not letting those small mess up ruin your families life that is the hard part you will need to work on. trust me when Moon was born I was over protective and I was lucky that I caught myself with Luna's help. otherwise I could have caused a rift in my daughters life or our relationship. and I know you will be over protective with the foal just like Scootaloo. So my only advise to you is to watch yourself and listen to your wife cause this will be easier on her then it will you. keep them close and safe, but don't hug them to death." then Chaotic looked forward like he always did, hoping that at least some of what he said made sense to this pony.

Heart shook his head violently. He remembered what he had said but it felt as if they weren't his words. "I'm sorry Chaotic. I don't know why I acted like that. Thank you for the advice. I will take it into consideration." Heart stared blankly at nothing wondering what just happened. _'What the hell was that? Did I just snap over a single sentence? I think that I may need to take a break. The stress must be getting to me.'_

Chaotic rose a brow and looked at Heart trying not to smile. _'Did he really just apologize? maybe there really is hope for him yet.' _Then Chaotic saw the look on Heart's face and had an idea. "It happens to all the rulers when things get to way on your mind. I would suggest a message from either Scootaloo or I can recommend one of the spa ponies. and maybe some meditation to help relax your mind and sort things out." Then Chaotic went back to looking at the door of the room with hope for Heart for the first time in a while.

Heart decided to get fresh air to help clear his head. He walked out of his castle and into town. He wanted to have his break be productive and would go around talking to his subjects. He did not have any guards.

As he walked by some ponies bowed, some looked on with disapproval. Heart didn't concern himself with those that disliked him. He walked up to a random mare with a filly next to her. They were walking on the sidewalk casually.

"Hello ma'am. I am Heart's Vision. I wanted to talk to you for a minute."

The mare wasn't to excited about talking with some random pony but she knew who he was and thought it was a worse idea to blow him off. "What would we talk about? I was on my way home."

Heart didn't want to impose but this pony didn't seem too busy and Heart need time to talk. "Perfect. We could talk in your home. If it is not too much trouble that is."

The mare again didn't want to but feared what might happen if she said no. "We can go to my home." The mare led Heart to her apartment. The entire time she tried to think of excuses to try to get rid of the king. She couldn't think of any. They entered the cheap apartment. Heart took in his surroundings. It was obvious that this mare didn't have money.

The mare motion Heart to sit in a worn out chair. At some this chair was nice but with age and usage it now was covered in stains and tears. Heart wasn't picky and sat down. The mare came back with two trays and cups of tea. The mare was a unicorn and had no problem levitating. She sat on the couch next to the chair.

Heart sampled the tea. He wasn't surprise when it was poor quality pre-made tea. Heart would have never noticed such a thing before his kingship. He smiled thinking about how different his life was.

The mare thought his actions odd. "So what do you want to talk about?"

Heart stopped thinking of the past and present and paid attention to the mare. "Not to sound egotistical but I want to talk about myself. Specifically the changes that I have made to this country. Don't worry, we will be talking about your opinions, so you can speak freely. No consequences for what you say, that is a promise. Will you be truthful knowing this?"

The mare hesitated and then nodded.

"Ok let's start with something not so drastic. What are your thoughts on the extra funding to schools?"

Having a child she agreed with his actions of course.

"How about the releasing and branding of criminals?"

The mare did not jump to her answer like before. "I don't like that former prisoners are walking around. I like that they are easily seen when they are around but it still gets to me that they are around my child."

"You know that our crime rates have gone down since that action?"

"Yes but it still bugs me."

"I understand. Now what about the punishments for those who do not comply to the law?" Heart continued to question the pony. After he had gone of the changes he had made he talked about her. He asked about what her life was like and what she worried about.

The pony would have normally not told a pony she had just met about her life but she felt obligated to tell Heart. "Well I worry about many things. I worry about my daughter mostly. It is had raising a child on one's own. My husband died soon after she was born."

Heart did not act like any royalty during this visit. He had been very laid back most of the time. He had asked her to share and would not have a double standard. "I know it can be hard. My father died when I was young as well. It put immense strain on my mother."

The mother was curious. "How did she deal with it?" Part was just curiosity and part was her seeking advice.

Heart showed no emotion with his sad words. "She didn't, she did her best to simply forget life existed. She used drugs to forget about all her problems. Abandoning everypony, including me."

The mare wasn't expecting Heart's response. She shied away. "I am sorry."

Heart wasn't. "Don't worry about it. And don't worry about your child. I will personally ensure that your family is taken care of."

The mare was confused. "huh?"

Heart stood up and headed for the door. "As you said, it is hard being a parent. Your child is our future just like every other foal. So I will be put some funding to single parents. You will not have to worry about money. All you have to worry about is raising your beautiful child. Goodbye ma'am." Heart left the mare a little befuddled.

Heart was now thinking of taking Chaotic's advise. He wasn't sure about getting a massage but some simple meditation sounded good. He felt a little like he was blowing off his duties but he thought it better for him to clear his head before making important decisions.

Heart made it to his room. He shut the light out and laid in his bed. He closed his eyes and delved into his thoughts. Entering his mind with magic helped him experience his happy memories more vividly.

He picked from various memories. Mostly of Scootaloo and him. Some of Twilight Sparkle. There was his younger memories with the Cutie Mark Crusaders. He was in the middle of reliving one of his memories when it faded and was replaced with one of pain.

He relived one of his memories of Fire Flash choking him. He hated it but he couldn't push the memory away. When it ended a voice like wind was heard.

'_You were weak and pathetic.'_

Heart turned to see the mist pony from his dreams. _'I was a child. How could expect me to stop that?'_

'_All you had to do was be strong. To stand up and say no.' _

'_That would have just pissed him off more. What I should have done was avoid him.' _

'_NO! That would have solved nothing. You did what needed to be done but later on. You served justice.'_

Heart's memory of killing Fire Flash popped up. Heart shook his head at his own act. _'That was an act of rage, not of justice. It was a wrong that I should have never committed.' _

'_Try to hide behind that false regret but you and I both know that there was no other way. If he had lived than he would have ended up killing you.' _

Heart was going to respond but was shaken back to reality by his love, Scootaloo. "What you doing honey?"

Heart blew off the event. He smiled at his joy. "Nothing. I was just reliving some memories. What are you doing?"

"Finding you in a really dark room running around in your head like a weirdo."

"Oh, I'm a weirdo now huh?"

Scootaloo laughed. "There is no now. You have always been a weird one. Sometimes you are just more weird than usual."

"Well if I'm so odd than why did you decide to be with me?"

"There wasn't a whole lot of selection in Ponyville." Scootaloo joked but Heart took it seriously. He tilted his head down. Scootaloo saw it and caught on. "No, no, now don't get all sad on me. I was kidding. The truth is that I love you for the way you are. You are odd but that's what makes you so great." Scootaloo used her hoof to make him look her in the eye. "I love you and always will."

Heart smiled. "I'm sorry. I think that the stress is getting to me."

"Maybe you should take a break. You are trying to be the sole ruler when it was taken care of by five different ponies and whatever Discord is."

Even while feeling down on himself Heart felt the urge to correct Scootaloo. "He is a draconaquus and Celestia ruled for the longest time by herself."

Scootaloo did her best to show Heart some reason. "She had practice before hoof. You are new at this and only one pony. Let somepony else do it." Scootaloo changed the subject. "How about you and I think of some names for our child."

Heart didn't see any sense in that. "We don't even know if it will be a unicorn or pegasus, much less a boy or girl."

Scootaloo nudged on Heart to get him to move away from the edge of the bed before crawling onto it herself. "That doesn't mean that we can't think of some names."

"I have nothing else to do and at least I get to spend time with you."

Scootaloo wished Heart was more enthusiastic but should would settle for compliance. "Ok so I have a few names that I have already thought of. For a girl, what do you think of Violet Sky?"

Heart tried to imagine having a child named that. "Not a bad name but let's think of something different."

Scootaloo liked that name. "How about some boy names. I'm thinking maybe Brimmed Heart."

Heart smiled at Scootaloo trying to name the kid after him. "I would rather not have him named after me. Tell me what else you got."

"Well…" Scootaloo continued putting out her suggestions but none seemed to stick. None seemed right. The child name remained undecided. Heart fell asleep without lowering the sun and a guard had to come and wake him to do it.

The next day Heart was in the throne room. He had some business to attend to today so there was no go off and talk to his citizens. He had already organized the funding for single parents. He was just waiting until the ponies to arrive. While he waited he spoke with Chaotic.

"You helped Luna with dreams right?"

Chaotic looked at him wondering where this was going but answered anyway. "Yes. and i still help the foals that need it the best i can. im not as good with it as Luna is, but i can help those foals that need it most. why? is there something you wish me to do about yours?"

"I was actually wondering if you could help me personally with something. It is not exactly that but it is a similar field. I can't tell you the specifics now. I can tell you them in private but I would like your answer now."

Chaotic nodded. "Sure anything I can do to help the king. just let me know when and where you want me to be to help you with what ever it is."

"Good. This evening meet me in my room."

Chaotic nodded.

Heart waited in his room. He had told Scootaloo to not come until Heart came and got her.

Chaotic entered the room after knocking. "I'm here."

Heart had been pacing and smiled at Chaotic. "Yes you are. I will get straight to the point. I need you to enter my mind."

Chaotic nodded. "And what will we be looking for? and do you want to be awake or asleep?"

Heart sat on the floor. "I don't know how to explain it and I don't think it will matter if I am awake or not. Whenever your ready." Heart closed his eyes and waited.

Chaotic walked up to Heart and entered his mind. Both Chaotic and Heart waited.

One of Heart's sad memories started to play. It was of his first day of school after moving to Ponyville. He waited in the rain for his mother that never came.

Chaotic was going to ask why he was watching this but before he said anything he heard a voice that was not Heart's.

The whispers of multiple voices echoed in Heart's mind. The mist pony appeared in front of Chaotic.

Chaotic looked at the pony wondering what it was or what it was doing here, but then he figured it out. "That is no normal nightmare Heart. that is a manifestation of evil trying to control your thoughts. I can not just push it out or change it like a nightmare. How long has this thing been showing itself to you?"

Heart had only noticed it recently. "I think it was two days ago? I can't figure out what it is. How can you say it is evil? It just looks like a pony to me. A very odd pony but still a pony."

The mist pony stood silently watching Chaotic.

Chaotic didn't like the sound of this. to him it meant that the evil in him was getting stronger. "I have had evil in my head before. once you know its there you can start to sense it more and more. and after dealing with it a few times in person. I can feel it radiating off of it. and to you it looks different than it does to me. I see the evil coming off it and closer to its real form, then the version it shows you to get you to trust it."

Heart didn't know how to deal with this. "Well how did it get here and what do I do to get it out?"

Chaotic wasn't sure on either front. he knew part of the how it got there but still had no clue how to get it out. "I am not sure on either front Heart. for now all I can do is help you fight it so that it can not make you into more of what you are not. this could explain many of the actions that were cruel or over the top. it may not have been completely you Heart. all you can do is fight it to try and remain yourself. if you listen to it then you will become nothing but a monster that lives to kill and destroy. if it would get out of control I could not guarantee that you would not hurt Scootaloo or your child. now that might take a long time or it might not. it depends on how strong this evil is and how strong your will to be a decent king and protect others is. I can help you, but you must want it to loosen your grip on you. you must be the one to choose not to listen to its words. I can't do a thing to help you if you don't want to help yourself. so choose if you let this consume you and loose yourself, or be stronger then its hate and be who you want to be."

As Chaotic finished his sentence Heart seemed to freeze in time. The air got bitterly cold which made no sense with the fact that they were in Heart's mind. The mist pony spoke with the voice of many. "You are an idiot. We can tell that you are not a pony in true and that you know more that you say. Heart might be oblivious to you but we are not. You know what we are and are lying to your supposed king."

Chaotic smirked slightly. "So you are smarter and deeper in control than I thought. you are correct that I had an idea of what you were. but this conversation has confirmed the thoughts I have had on the subject. and yes I am not originally a pony. I was turned into one by Discord. and If Heart wants to know about that he can ask. it has never been important before this. and as to lying to him, not really. I had suspicions that had no meaning until you confirmed that I now know you are windigos. stuck in his body before birth as far as I know. either way what i say about you corrupting his mind and heart is true."

The mist pony smiled wickedly. "It seems that something has opened it's maw about our tragic binding to this soul. You know about this, but Heart does not. Interesting. So you know about us but won't tell Heart. I wonder why not? Why are you hiding from Heart? I know his suspicions. It must mean that his worries are true. You are not really on his side. You are a liar. I will make sure to let Heart know this."

Chaotic shrugged. "He already does. he has heard every word of this even though you tried to hide it from him. he knows that I hid only things I didn't know for sure. why tell him things that had no backing behind them. he is a logical pony and would have called me insane should i have told him before this. but now that you have shown yourself and he knows we both have hid things from him, but I am willing to tell him now that he will believe me and you still try to control him. we will see who side he will take. he may be pissed at me for hiding something he wouldn't believe from him, but I'm sure the thoughts you give him of hurting the ponies closet to him will piss him off more than that. if not then your control is stronger than I hoped for. so release your hold on him and let him speak his mind on the matter."

The mist pony laughed. "Ha! You really think that we would say this with the risk of him knowing? We are on a subconscious part of his mind. If you were Luna than you would have known this. Heart can't hear anything we are saying. We are in control here. His thoughts, his mind, they are all ours. And the hate of all is our fuel. You can do nothing to us unless you want to kill Heart. If you really want you can. We are sure that his followers will appreciate it. All it takes is to kill Heart to get rid of us but you won't because you are a coward. You are a no nut having coward. All you are is a pathetic human that interferes with the affairs of another world. So why don't you just leave Heart's mind and let us create a home from his ruined soul."

Chaotic shook his head knowing something that these spirits didn't. "His soul isn't completely ruined and I wont give up on him. he has to many that care for him for me to just give up on him. and your right. I could kill Heart. but I won't. he doesn't deserve to die. He's a good kid, even with you corrupting him. now back off and let me speak with him once again."

The mist pony smiled even wider. "Very well coward. We do not care what you do." The pony faded.

Heart reanimated. "Where did the pony go?"

Chaotic looked at Heart. "back into your subconscious where it had taken me and we had a conversation about what is known and what is still hidden from you. for now all you can do is put up walls and know who you are. not let it turn you into a monster. and when we get out of your mind I will show you everything that was said while you were frozen in your own mind. their control of your mind is strong and keeps growing. you must be careful if you do not wish to lose yourself to them. if you wish for me to help put up walls to keep you the way you are I will do so. otherwise I must leave and show you what was said."

Heart didn't understand how this thing could control his mind but he trusted Chaotic more than some unknown being. "Don't leave. I have more faith in you than some mist pony thing. I asked you to come help me and I still want help. I don't like this thing. Whatever it is."

Chaotic nodded and his horn lit up. Heart was getting surrounded by a bubble like shield. "Do not fight this magic. it is only to protect who you are. if you fight it those things will be able to break it and keep corrupting your mind. this will not last forever but if you help fuel it, it should hold longer so we can add more to it so that you don't keep losing pieces of yourself to them. so please help feed this spell."

Heart did as Chaotic said and poured his magic into the spell. Heart hoped that this worked and he would not have that thing in his head telling him what to do.

Chaotic finished the spell and tried to make sure it would last a while. "that should last some time. if you feel it starting to weaken let me know and we can strengthen it again. we will keep this up long enough for us to figure out how to either weak, kill, or remove those things from your mind. until then we have done all we can for now. it should either keep them out fully or muffle anything they say so you can know they are trying to control you. now I must leave your mind. then I show you some truth you may not like but you need to know."

Chaotic left Heart's mind and was surprised by what he found. Ice had formed around Heart. Small shard popped over his body. The entire room was now freezing cold. Heart was shocked. He didn't understand what was happening. "What the fuck!"

Chaotic spoke out loud, more to himself than Heart. "Their power is stronger than I feared." then he looked to Heart. "You must let me show you what happened in you mind that you did not see. I will use a hive mind technique that basically records what i want it to. i turned it on when you froze. it will explain a few things and raise a few questions. listen to everything before you decide to attack me or not. and I will answer everything you want me to after you see this. listen well." then Chaotic put his horn to Hearts temple and played the movie of what was said with the windigos. then once it was over he waited for Hearts reaction, which he figured wouldn't be a good one.

Heart sat quietly for a minute. He questioned in a low voice. "How did they get there. You said something about them being in me before birth. What were you talking about?"

Chaotic spoke calmly looking at Heart. "I don't know the entire story, but a new species i have not heard of before arrived at Twilight's castle telling us of how your mother was ponynapped and tested on. they were trying to take pony magic or transfer it or something like that so that they could use it for themselves. but what seemed to have happened instead was that windigos, those in you now, were placed there without them or your mother knowing. i and the others only found out about this being a possibility recently. so i chose not to mention it until we were sure that was what happened. otherwise it would just be me saying that you had evil in you and Petal and you jumping at me not understanding what I meant before I could explain. plus without proof there was no reason to try and find out how to help you anyway. but now that we know for sure that is what happened and that you are not wanting to be what they want you to. there is hope to get those things out of you and save us all, especially those you love, from a monstrous fate."

Heart understood why he waited. He would have done the same. "hmm… I don't know what to really think. Is there a way for me to remove them? Can I get rid of them in any way?"

Chaotic took an approach he didn't know if would work or not. He put a hoof on Heart's shoulder and took a more fatherly tone. "I am not sure just yet Heart. but I can promise you that the others are looking for a way to remove them. and now that we know about it, we can take precautions to stop you from losing yourself to them. now we have a plan. but you must know that once they are removed...I am not completely sure what will happen to you. as far as I can tell. nothing will, except you wont have nightmares or them corrupting you. but only time will tell."

Heart noticed what Chaotic said. "The other are looking for a way to get rid of them?"

Chaotic nodded as he put his hoof down. "Yes. they know more than i do and that creature and Twilight are at the front of looking for a solution. and one that does not involve killing you. That's Twilight for you. she still sees that helpful kid you used to be. instead of the threat some see you as now. you know I have disagreed with a few of your choices. and I wont say I did. but i am still on Twilight's side of keeping you alive. you have done a lot of good in this short time. and heck I have agreed with most of your actions even when most ponies wouldn't. but as you saw, I'm not like the other ponies either. so until I know you are totally lost to those things, I still think there is hope for you, even as king of this kingdom. so they will keep looking, and I will keep helping."

"You have been on their side the entire time?"

Chaotic saw where this was going. "I didn't know there was any sides. all i knew was i wanted to remove evil from a pony that shouldn't have had this placed on them. if that is a side. then yes. I was on the side of getting those damn things out of you before you hurt someone close to you because of them."

Heart's eyes filled with rage. "You are a liar! You lied to me and are a disgrace!"

Chaotic was about to defend himself when Heart grabbed hold of him with his magic and hurled him through the wall, The room's wall broke into bits as Chaotic crashed through it to the outside. He used his wings to not plummet to the awaiting ground below. Chaotic looked back into the room where he saw Heart breathing heavily.

All Chaotic could do was shake his head. _'Even without the windigos you have a temper.'_ then Chaotic flew to the castle entrance and went to his room. he honestly figured Heart would try and kill him, either in his sleep or after he woke. either way he wasn't planning anything else then the next morning.

**A/N: Don't forget about the deal. All you gotta do is review. Also I want to mention if you see an I not capitalized it is my fault but DLB doesn't make my job any easier. He won't FUCKING do it. Some one should totally bring this A/N to his attention. I want him to find it but I ain't telling him. That isn't you problem though, unless you want it to be. Everyone have a nice day.~ sci-fi**


	28. Revealed enemies come with former allies

**A/N: well no one reviewed. Could have done it and gotten an extra chapter but nope. It doesn't matter all the chapter will be pasted soon enough.**

Chapter 27: Revealed enemies come with former allies.

it was the next morning when Chaotic woke up slightly sore from the attack the night before. it was not enough to injure him, but it was enough to make his side ach slightly. so Chaotic stayed in his room a while and stretched out his muscles. once he was feeling better he thought he would risk showing up to the throne room to see if Heart was himself or willing to kill him still. Chaotic entered the throne room to see that no one was in the room. this confused Chaotic but figured it had to do something with Heart giving orders or sleeping in and his beacons were getting him for his day to start. Chaotic wasn't going to wait to be teamed up against with Petal and Heart, so he left a note saying that if he was wanted to let him know, otherwise he was going to go see his family.

then Chaotic flew out of the castle and to Ponyville. he arrived with only a few minutes before Moon and Illusion would get out of school so he decided to land at the school and walk them home. "Hey Cebby! how are you today?" Cebby saw it was Chaotic and all three heads smiled brightly. "Doing good pops. just waiting for Moon and Illusion to get out of school. how about you? what are you doing here?" Chaotic shrugged and landed next to the large dog. "I will tell you and the others in the castle later. for now I just want to see My favorite filly and colt. walk them home and maybe stop for ice cream on the way. you up for some?" Cebby nodded happily. he may be older and smarter, but no one was to old for ice cream!

soon the school bell rang out and fillies and colts came running out of the school laughing and yelling. it did Chaotic's heart good to see all these happy faces. and his good mood only grew when he saw a certain filly come trotting in his direction. then when she saw who was with Cebby she started to run. Moon jumped into Chaotic's open hooves giggling the entire way. Choaitc found himself laughing with her as he hugged her and put her down. "Hey honey, how was your day?" Moon smiled as Illusion came up behind her. "it was good daddy! we learned a new spell!" Illusion added something to it. "Ya now we can do more than just levitate stuff!" the two foals laughed happily knowing they both could do much more than just that. but they enjoyed the little joke all the same.

"Well that is good to hear. and how about we celebrate with some ice cream on the way home?" the loud yes's that came after the question fully answered him. so they went off to get some ice cream for each of them. Illusion chose cotton candy flavored, just like his dad in choosing sweets. Moon on the other hoof chose rocky road. Chaotic chose moose tracks because of all the chocolate in it. and Cebby chose two different flavors per head. Chaotic knew since Cebby was bigger he would need more to just taste it so he spoiled the big pup just like he always had. just another spoiled kid of the old king. "So lets get home before your mothers starts to worry about where you are."

Both kids nodded happily as they ate their ice cream and walked home. the castle came into view and Luna could be seen on the balcony waiting. she had looked worried until she saw her husband walking behind the foals. then her look turned into a happy smirk knowing that her husband was once again spoiling their little girl and even their nephew. Luna flew down and met them at the entrance of the castle. "You stopped for ice cream I see. and where is" she didn't get to finish her question as a cone of vanilla ice cream was levitated to her muzzle. "What? think I would forget my favorite mare?" Luna gave him a smirk and took the cone. "thank you. now come on, you two have homework to get to."

two "awww" answered her order. Chaotic smiled and offered to help them with their homework and that cheered up the filly more than the colt, but he still liked the help. it only took a few minutes for the trio to finish the homework so they snuck out of the castle to the playground out back and played a few games for a half hour before being caught by Luna. "Nice try you three but is the homework done?" all three answered at the same time in a playful tone. "Yes Luna." then the three broke out laughing as Luna shook her head. "Ok you two, we adults have some things to talk about, so go play with your friends and I will see you later ok?" the foals nodded and ran off with Cebby following close.

Luna's looked changed almost instantly. "Why are you here instead of the castle? this cant be good if you are playing with the kids instead of telling us what is going on." Chaotic gave a heavy sigh. "That is because I am not sure what is going on. Heart found out last night about the Windigos inside him. and when I thought I was finally getting threw to him... he got pissed and threw me though a wall..." Luna looks surprised and scared and Chaotic continued. "I went to the throne room this morning and no one was there. so I left a note saying that if I was wanted to let me know, otherwise I would be with my family. and as you can see, if am still here. now lets go tell the others."

then Chaotic and Luna went into the castle and told his other friends what happened from entering his mind to being thrown threw a wall. "So all we can do now is wait and see what he does. excepts our help, or now tries to wipe us out because he is lost to those things." Twilight was trying to hold herself together while hearing what Heart had to deal with, then what he had said and done. "D-do you think he can still be saved?" Chaotic gave a sigh, "To be honest twilight...I am not sure, we can only hope"

A loud banging was heard as some pony knocked on the Castle's doors. Twilight decided to answer it. She opened it to see Heart's Vision standing waiting for her to answer. She was struck with fear and happiness. She was happy to see the stallion that she had mentored for so long but with the recent news feared why he was here.

Heart rushed forward shocking Twilight but was of no malicious intent. Heart crushed Twilight in a hug. "I'm sorry Twilight. I'm just so sorry." A tear ran down Heart's face.

Twilight smiled knowing that there was hope for her student. "It's ok Heart. We will fix this."

"You can't fix what I've done. You bring back the ponies I've hurt."

Discord walked to Heart. "It is ok my friend. You are fighting forces that would overwhelm another pony."

Dominic appeared next to Heart. "I am the one to blame not you."

Heart didn't recognize the voice. He looked at the creature. His sadness was temporarily replaced by shock. "What the hell are you!" Heart had pushed Twilight back and gained a defensive posture.

Dominic chuckled. "That doesn't get old. You ponies always freak out. I am a Slican. As to WHO I am. I am Dominic Brightstone. In the past I captured your mother and preformed a ritual to take her magic but instead transferred those windigos into you."

Heart yelped in pain. He fell to the floor grasping his head.

Voices screamed from inside his head. _'Kill him! Kill him! Do it! Kill the Lizard! KILL HIM!'_

Heart felt a massive pain in his head as the Windigos broke through a barrier. "NO! I will not listen to you! Never again!"

Everypony stared at Heart as he screamed for seemingly no reason. Twilight put a hoof on him. "Are you ok?"

Heart shook his head as the voices stopped. "Yes. I am fine. It seems that they don't like Dominic."

Dominic used a sarcastic tone. "I wonder why. It isn't like I trapped them in your body or anything."

Heart didn't find it funny. "It isn't like I have to resist killing you because they won't shut up about it."

Dominic realized this was not the time and said nothing.

Heart looked at Chaotic. "I think that your barriers didn't work. I still hear them and now they like punishing me for disobeying."

Chaotic nodded. "then they are stronger than i thought. and the sight of Dominic must have released all of their hate causing the barrier to weaken so they could break it easier. I am sure that Twilight you and I can come up with a barrier that will at least keep the punishment out. I'm sorry the first one broke so easily. I was not prepared for what I found. and after realizing all that you did it must have shaken more then just what you knew. as in it had already rattled the barrier before they readied their attack. so we will go to the archives and look for stronger spells. until then I will teach you how to control the evil things inside you. I grew up with an alternate personality that was pure evil so I can teach you a few techniques that might help you keep in control." Chaotic when up to Heart and placed a hoof on his shoulder. "I am sorry this happened to a good stallion like you. but I'm glad it didn't happen to a pony with a weaker mind or heart. otherwise we would have a monster on our hooves. so as bad as this is, it could be worse without you being who you are."

Heart wasn't sure if he believed that. "Thanks for the compliment. And… I'm sorry for…Well, throwing you through a wall."

Chaotic couldn't help but laugh. "Oh don't worry about that! almost everyone in this room minus Dominic had attacked me at some point. and you didn't leave any lasting harm so alls forgiven. and if it means that you are here trying to make things right, you can throw me through a few more walls!" Chaotic laughed as the ones around him either snickered or smirked at his actions.

All but Heart who was still upset at himself. "Explain to me what you all know so far. I want these things out of me."

Twilight explained to Heart what they had been doing the entire time he had been ruling. Heart was surprised. "So it has taken you this long and you are waiting on Zecora? Really? You found nothing? Nothing!?"

Twilight understood that Heart was upset but she did her best. "I'm sorry Heart but we did what we could. There wasn't a wealth of information at our disposal. We did are best. All we can do now is wait for Zecora to find that artifact."

"It isn't enough! These things need to be gone! They have already done too much."

Twilight tried to talk sense into the pony. "There isn't much we can do. We can help you try to protect against them but the only way we know to get rid of them is with Zecora and she needs that artifact. You will have to sit and wait."

Heart was angry and wanted to act with his anger but stopped himself. "Ok. I can wait. I might as well right some wrongs while I'm here."

Twilight didn't understand what he meant. She waited to see if he would answer her question for her.

Heart looked at the ponies he had betrayed. He hated himself for if but knew what he had to do. "I betrayed you all and took most of your powers. I am now going to give them back." Heart did as he said. He returned everypony and draconaquus their powers. Heart felt weak with his loss of so much power. He wobbled on his hooves. He slowly lied down on the floor so he wouldn't fall over.

Everypony was shocked when Shining Armor came close and kicked Heart on his side while he was down. "That's for taking them in the first place!"

Heart grunted as the hoof made contact. Twilight yelled at her brother. "What the hell! Why would you do that!?"

Shining Armor backed off. "punishment."

Twilight didn't believe that her brother did that. "You can't just do that!"

Heart waved it off. "It's fine Twilight. I deserved it. He is all good."

Twilight frowned at Heart. "He shouldn't do such things. He has no right to punish you."

Heart didn't care. "Let's not worry about it Twilight." Heart stayed on the ground. "You all have your powers back. I honestly don't know how to proceed from here. Do you want to go back ruling or what?"

Celestia responded. "I think that would be best. You shouldn't be in a position to hurt more ponies. We need to return everything back to normal."

"No." Chaotic spoke firm and the others looked at him in confusion. so he explained his thoughts. "Heart needs to stay in power. as he said, he needs to write some wrongs. and if we just take back over I know at least two ponies and a possible army of them that might think we just took down their leader and for some, savoir. The lanterns will rise to save Heart, even if he admits that it was his choice to give the powers back. the best way to make this right is to let him stay in charge and not let anyone know he gave up the powers just yet. Then he can change those things that are wronged without any opposition. then once those are done he can tell the ponies that he has given the power back and will step down. And with that we will all work together to keep making progress. that's the only way I can see this ending without a war on either side. but Heart would have to make the decision to do this. and we would have to stand behind him. and as I have told him, many of the things he has done are actually making this kingdom better. the marks, and getting rid of those that can't be helped and putting that money to the kids. and helping single parents and a few other that I honestly think need to stay. even the Lanterns them selves are a good idea, just without the special privileges. so will you let him make these few wrongs be righted, and let the good stay? or will you just take back over?"

Celestia looked down at Heart. Seeing him now made her think of how this pony could have ever been a threat. She had seen how much good this pony could do. She saw how long he held out against spirits that are powerful enough to destroy notions. Twilight had shown her how much effort he put forth. She couldn't let such a strong soul go unredeemed. "We can let Heart redeem himself. He deserves that much."

Shining didn't like the decision. "What!? Why would you let him go back? Who knows how much damage he could end up doing? Why risk it?"

Celestia answered in her calm manner. "Multiple reasons. He deserves a second chance, everypony does. As Chaotic stated, the Lanterns wouldn't appreciate their leader being dethroned suddenly. I don't want any unnecessary bloodshed. Heart will keep the throne and we will find a way to slowly take control back."

Heart had an idea. "I may be able to solve that problem. If I start bringing you all to the castle, showing you to be friends. Than the Lanterns will have a easier time accepting you as their leaders again. In a few days I could make a statement saying that I have returned Luna her powers. I am only one pony and I cannot go without sleep. The ponies of Equestria have had no pony watching over their dreams. This would be a small step towards putting you back in power." Heart scoffed. "Plus I would like to not have nightmares every night."

Luna smiled. "Tell us when it is official and I will start. If you would like I could prevent your nightmares until then."

Heart shook his head no. "If everypony doesn't get it than I don't deserve it. I will deal until it is made official. I will keep fake returning your powers until you all have them back. Each time telling them that I am doing it because I am not capable of everything and slowly you will be the unofficial rulers. So when I hoof over the throne it will not be such a ruff transition. Sound good?"

Everypony nodded. Heart liked his plan. He wished that he wouldn't have to do at all but he had made the mistakes and he would make them right. Heart stayed until he regained his strength. Twilight and the others used their powers to create and strengthen Heart's mental barriers. Heart wasn't sure how effective they would be after seeing how quickly they had broken before. While Heart was there he conversed with Dominic, who apologized for the hardship.

Heart blew it off. Heart was easily forgave the slican. When Heart came back to the Canterlot Castle he viewed his throne differently. Before it was a symbol of his righteously earned position. Now he realized it was his seat of tyranny that was stolen.

Sun Petal was whispering to Lachrymose and giggling. Heart smiled at the happiness of his followers. At the same time it brought him a sliver of sadness knowing that he caused the exact opposite feeling for many ponies. Lachrymose said something to Petal and then looked over at Heart. "Heart's Vision."

Heart was already looking at them. "Hmm?"

Lachrymose usually wasn't so pleasant towards Heart but she had a happy tone. "Would you remove my mark? I promise not to wander off."

Heart looked at the permanent mark that Heart had bonded so she could not hide. He didn't like the idea that she could impersonate any pony he cared about but he also saw that this was not really about the mark. It was about trust. "Yes." Heart removed his spell from her. Her false cutie mark was removed from her black coat.

The smiled at Heart. "Thank you. It always irritated me."

"Your welcome Lachrymose."

Lachrymose kept her happy attitude. "Please don't call me that. Call me Plecia."

Heart didn't get it. "Plecia?"

"Yes Plecia. My real name is Plecia Nearctica."

"Plecia it is than. Thank you for sharing your real name with me finally."

"I only wanted to share it with the real you."

Petal butted in. "The real him?"

Heart understood that she was talking about his recent revelation. Heart diverted attention from Plecia "Petal, have you organized the single parent funding yet?"

Petal forgot about her question. "It will be finalized soon. It won't be much longer until t will be available."

"Good. We have some other changes that need to be made."

**A/N: For those who don't know (99.9% of the world) Plecia Nearctica is a part of the scientific name of a love bug, yay science for giving me an excuse to use a name that probably used a thousand times in other fanfics for Changelings. Well Heart finally knows his own big secret. Now he just has to fix all his fuck ups. Also he is a pussy. Breaking down and crying like that. Be a man Heart! Or at least be a stallion. Everyone have a nice day.~ sci-fi**


	29. Turn the other cheek

Chapter 28:Turn the other cheek

Two months had passed. Heart did as his plan dictated. The first month he had invited The old rulers back as guests. The Lanterns freaked out the first time because Heart's Vision didn't tell them who his guests were. As time passed the Lanterns saw them regularly and didn't see them as a threat. At the end of the second month Heart made the announcement that Luna would return to her duties as the princess of the night. Heart didn't not give her that title. He officially said she would be a dream watcher.

The Lanterns thought of this as giving a lesser work. They didn't see Luna as a ruler but as an assistant. Chaotic Love was happy no matter their thoughts. He could now see his wife and child everyday now instead of when Heart permitted it.

Heart ordered for the acts of power and punishment such at the public skinning to cease. He removed the symbols that branded him as a heartless monster. He did keep the strict punishment for the ponies that disobeyed the serious laws but they were punished away from the public and had quick deaths.

It was three days after Luna was made the dream watcher and Heart wanted to thank her. They were in the castle dinning room alone.

Heart was happy to not have the nightmares, the blank dreams were better than the horrible ones. "Thank you Luna. The last three days I have had some great sleep."

On the other hand Luna looked a little worn out. "Your welcome Heart. I am glad to help you fight those monsters."

Heart saw that Luna looked tired. "Are you alright? You seem a bit tired."

Luna waved it off. "I am fine. I am a little out of practice is all. I had grown use to being lazy. It was almost like a vacation. Not as relaxing as I would want but I didn't have to work."

"Do you want to go back?"

Luna smiled. "No. I need to get back to work. I will have to go back to doing it soon enough even if I take a break. All the ponies need me. I will be fine."

Heart asked where Chaotic was.

"He is with Moon. She didn't have school today and he is in Ponyville with her and Illusion. Those two love each other. Even though they aren't siblings they might as well be." Luna changed the subject. "Have you had any more incidences."

Heart was unsure what she would classify as an incident. "Have I had them screech for me to kill a pony? No. Have I had them send me into agony because I said no? No. Can I feel their influence? Yes. The tug at me to take action but I can easily resist them. I don't know if they are just being subtle or if they can't do anymore than that. It worries me. I know they are there but I don't know how strong they are or the barriers. I can't tell if they are just toying with me or not."

Luna couldn't understand what it felt like exactly but she had her own demon that she dealt with so she had an idea. "Know that you are stronger than them. They are just pathetic leeches. A parasite that has no power unless you give them it. You have fought them for years without even realizing it. That is how weak they are. It didn't even take you being aware for you to fight them off. You have plenty of strength to fight them off."

Heart was happy that she had confidence in him but it didn't do much. "Thanks for the boost but I feel like I am alone in the fight sometimes."

"How could you think that? We are all here for you and I am sure that Scootaloo supports you fully."

Heart shied away. "Well… Scootaloo actually doesn't know."

Luna yelled at Heart "Why haven't you told her!?"

"Why are you so mad about it? I haven't told her because I don't want for her to worry. I hate to see her anything but happy."

Luna gave him a glare that sent shivers down his spin. "And how do you think she will feel if you lose control and end up killing yourself? Do you remember what happened last time you didn't tell her because you thought it was the best thing to do?"

Heart's heart plunged at the thought. "Ok. I will tell her. I promise."

Luna retracted her serious expression. "Good. I trust you will not lie to me."

Later that day in Heart was spending time with Scootaloo. She was now full on devoted to being a mother. She had Heart helping pick out everything. The type of crib they would have, the color of the blankets, the type of material, where they would put the thing, what type of bottles they would use, the type of milk they would feed them. Heart became easily overwhelmed with it all.

Heart backed away from a massive catalogue of baby items. "I thought the wedding was a lot of choices."

Scootaloo looked at Heart with a serious expression. "Come on, we have to pick these things. I want to be prepared when it comes."

Heart should have realized that she would go overboard with this but he didn't. "We have plenty of time and it doesn't have to be perfect."

"Yes it does. I want our child to have everything it needs."

Heart tried to get his wife to stop. "Please just stop for a minute, please."

Scootaloo inhaled sharply then sighed. "Fine."

Heart smiled trying to get her to do the same. She didn't. "I have to tell you something." Scootaloo looked at him waiting. "You remember when I threw Chaotic through the wall?"

"How could I forget walking in and finding that we gained a gaping hole in the room?"

"Well I never told you why I did it." Heart explained that he had found out about the windigos and that Chaotic was lying to him the entire time trying to find the right time to tell him.

"So you have windigos inside you?"

"Yes."

"What do they do?"

"Recently they don't do much. They kind of tug on my mind to try and get me to do stuff. I can tell it is them and I resist them. Before they were like a voice in my head that wasn't my own. They caused all of my nightmares. They try me to do harmful things to create hate towards myself and in turn hate others. Now I need to try to stay happy. Remove the hate as much as possible so that I don't give them any power."

Scootaloo understood the seriousness of the situation and did her best to make Heart happy right away. "Well if that is the case than you should spend the entire day with me."

It worked, bringing a smile to Heart's face. After such a dreadful conversation. "How I wish I could. I still have responsibilities."

Scootaloo knew that Heart needed encouragement. "Those don't matter if I lose you, so at any point you think you need me, come. I love you Heart. I will always be here for you."

"I know, and I will always be here for you. I won't let you or our child be alone. I won't let these things win. We will get rid of them and we can live happily."

The entire castle shook and an explosion of noise echoed from the throne room. "What the hell!" Heart didn't understand what was going on but he teleported Scootaloo to Twilight's castle incase something was going down. He then teleported himself to the front of the throne room. He was shocked to see that his throne had been torn apart. A crater existed where the throne no longer did.

He looked around and noticed that a few guards had been taken down by pieced of stone. Heart saw that Plecia was laying by the wall. He rushed to her to see if she was ok. She was breathing heavily and was bleeding at her side. Heart didn't know much about changeling anatomy and didn't know how to heal her. He didn't see any other pony around and wondered where everypony had went. There was the two guards by the door who were not breathing, and Plecia.

Where was Sun Petal or Lightning Hoof? Heart double checked to see if the guards were alive. Their cores were not showing and he assumed that they were dead. Plecia spoke in a weak voice. "Help me." Heart wished he could but he couldn't. He remembered what Luna had said. Chaotic was in Ponyville with Moon and Illusion.

Heart teleported to Twilight's with Plecia where Chaotic was about to go to the castle after Scootaloo had told them what was happening. Heart looked at Chaotic. "Help her!"

Chaotic's eye grew in shock and he didn't waist any time. "Give her some space and let me see how bad she is." then Chaotic was over her scanning the changelings body. "She's in bad shape but luckily I can do something about this. in the mean time send Luna to check on the others in the throne room. she might be able to save some of them."

Chaotic closed his eyes as his horn lit up and green magic flowed into Plecia and the bleeding slowed, then stopped. the wounds started to heal and close. Plecia's breathing started to slow and calm down as she laid on the ground unconscious. "She should be fine now, but she needs rest and fluids. Moon, Illusion would you mind getting her to a bed and getting her a drink when she wakes up please?" the kids nodded happily and Moon took Plecia in her magic and levitated her to the nearest room with a bed as Illusion got some water.

Meanwhile Chaotic took Heart back to the throne room to find out what happened. "Heart, find your beacons, I know you are worried about them. I am going to find out what happened here." Chaotic performed a time spell that showed the explosion as if it were happening in real time. Chaotic saw a pony deliver a package a few minutes before the explosion and then the explosion. The pony was one of Heart's staff. She delivered his mail. luckily only the two guards and Plecia was in the room during the explosion.

Chaotic was shocked that this happened. Some pony tried to kill Heart, with a bomb.

Heart returned to the room with Sun Petal and Lightning Hoof. Luna couldn't do anything for the two guards. While Heart was gone they disposed of the bodies. Many of Heart's Lantern guards were in the room now. They were on alert and watching out for their leader. Two large puddles of blood were on the floor where the dead ponies had been. Heart asked Chaotic what happened.

"Somepony tried to bomb you. Your mail mare unknowingly delivered a bomb to your throne. Since you weren't here, only the guards and Plecia were injured. I will find the pony who did this. You find out where they got the explosives and how they knew how to make a bomb."

Heart nodded and Chaotic left. Luna left with him. Heart looked at the crater that was his throne. He used his magic to reform it and repair the room. He told Petal and Lightning to start searching for answers to who did this. Heart could only think of one place that the pony cold get explosives. Heart took a trip to the old prison where they were trying to create guns.

Heart found out two things while he was there. Some explosives had gone missing the day before and that one of the researchers had not come in today. Heart went to the researcher's home where he found his answer to what happened. She was tied up and tortured. Heart did not know when she died but he knew it had been a while. Heart teleported a letter to police to clean this up.

Heart teleported back to the throne room waiting for Chaotic to do his work. It took a few hours but Chaotic came in dragging a unicorn.

She squirmed trying to get away but Chaotic's magic held her firmly. Chaotic was sure of himself. "This is the mare that sent your present. I brought her here so that you could judge her and decide her punishment." Chaotic wanted to see how Heart would punish the mare.

The mare looked at Heart with hate. She sneered.

Heart looked at her but did not grow angry. He was saddened by it. "Who are you and why did you do this?"

The mare answered with disgust. "You don't care about my name. I warned you about this. Revenge. I failed but others will try and they will succeed. You got lucky."

Heart recalled the letter she referenced vaguely. "So you are the one who threatened my kingdom. You didn't answer my other question. Why did you try to kill me?"

"Because you tortured and killed my brother and sister."

Heart had sentence multiple ponies to horrible deaths. He wasn't proud but he did do it and he couldn't know which ponies she was talking about. "Who were your brother and sister?"

The pony bared her teeth. "You sack of shit! You don't even know who they are! Navy blue unicorn and a yellow earth pony! You took them with a pegasus. You gouged the pegasus' eye out and tore her wings off!"

Heart remembered which ponies she was talking about. The three ponies that were planning to capture Scootaloo and use her against Heart. His heart sunk remembering what he did to them. How he lashed the brother and skinned the sister. "I remember them. I am sorry. If I could change what I did I would."

"Don't lie to me. You are a monster that doesn't care. I know everything you did. She told me what happened. She told me what you did to my siblings."

Heart regretted every second of his acts. "I am sorry. I truly am. What I did was horrible. I don't even blame you for how you have acted."

The pony seemed to not care about what Heart said. "I wish that I hadn't been caught so I could kill that bitch you call your wife."

Heart's anger emerged but he did not act. He heard voices echo inside his head. _'She wants to kill your Scoot. She wants to kill you. She is crazy. You need to kill her. It is the only way.'_

Heart did not agree._ 'No. I will not. It is my fault not her's.' _

Heart's head felt like it was cracking open as the spirits punished him. _'kill her! Kill her or she will kill you!'_

Heart fell to the ground grasping his head. His guards rushed to his side. He waved them off. _'I will never listen to you. I say she lives. you go back to whatever little hole you came from and stay there.' _The windigos backed off. Heart looked down at he angered pony. She had been put in a submissive position so that she wouldn't harm Heart.

Heart kneeled down to her level and looked her in the eyes. His eyes leaked tears as he spoke. "I understand what I did. I know it was wrong. I respect that you wanted to avenge your siblings. You are a great pony." The pony became confused as he complimented her. "I did a horrible thing. I regret every second of it. Don't throw your life away just because of what I did. I'm not worth it. I am sure that your brother and sister would want you to live for them. I'm not saying I don't deserve punishment but don't throw away your life to do it. I will get what I deserve. Just give it time."

Heart stood up and addressed everypony. "This pony before me is guilty for killing two royal guards and injuring a changeling. For her crimes she must be punished. I sentence her to branding. She will live with the mark of a murderer."

Everypony including the bomber was confused. They were expecting her to be killed for this crime. Petal spoke up. "You are going to just let her go? She tried to kill you! She will most likely try to do it again! She is a monster that killed our brothers and hurt my lover!"

Heart didn't see the monster that Petal saw. The only monster he saw was when he looked in the mirror. "She will be set free. She tried to kill me, yes. But she did it out of revenge. I am at fault. If she tries again I will most likely die. But if she does than she will die too." Heart looked down at her. "Don't be like me. Don't throw everything away because I am horrible."

The mare was bewildered by Heart's mercy. Chaotic let her go. She looked at Heart debating whether to kill him. She came to a decision. She turned and walked away. A guard escorted her to a branding station.

Heart sat back on his throne. She was gone from view as the doors closed. Most the ponies in the room looked at Heart with confusion.

Chaotic walked up next to him and hide a proud smile and spoke so only Heart could hear. "I am proud of you Heart. that was more mercy then I think even I would have given her. I will make sure she is followed by a changeling to help her keep on the safe side of life. and you are a better king then you give yourself credit for. especially now that you are the real you again. And just so you know about it, I will be watching Petal as well so she doesn't take the law into her own hooves. but I must say very well done my friend."

Heart replied in a low tone. "Thank you. Don't worry about Petal. I do not believe that she will disobey my direct will. I just hope this doesn't come back to bite me in the ass."

**A/N: Has gone in a slightly different direction hasn't it? Heart not the bad guy anymore. Let's hope that he can keep those spirits in check. ~sci-fi **


	30. Trail to nowhwere

**A/N: I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. I want you to know that we appreciate your support. Keep supporting by reviewing, following, or favoriting this story. we thank you very much. ~sci-fi**

Chapter 29: Trail to nowhere.

A few days after Heart forgave the bomber. He slept soundly in his bed with Scootaloo. His mind being safe during this time due to Luna.

Luna had finished blocking Heart's nightmares. This night was different. Tonight a presence called her attention.

_Luna stood in the blackness that was Heart's dreams. The mist pony appeared in front of her, smiling. It spoke in it's wind like voice. "Another night of cock blocking Luna?"_

_Luna was not phased by the being. "What do you think you will accomplish by insulting me? Do you require a reaction? Is that what you seek? You will not tempt me with such a pathetic attempt." _

_The pony just kept smiling. "We are just voicing our opinions. No need to be so testy. I was wondering why you shield Heart from his own dreams?" _

_Luna was disappointed from the spirits. "I know they are not his dreams. They are your influence. He would not dream such horrors. YOU put them there. Don't try to trick me." _

"_We are not trying to trick you. We are trying to enlighten you. We are one with Heart. What we show him is his dreams. You deprive him of dreams. You deny him this insight."_

_Luna knew better than to trust them. "I will let him dream whatever he pleases when we get rid of you." _

"_You cannot get rid of us. We just told you, We are one with Heart. His body uses us. Without us he will die. If you want him to be free than kill him. Then we can leave this vessel. Free him Luna. Don't let him become like you once were." _

"_Like I once were?"_

_The mist pony faked a heartfelt smile. "I don't like speaking of the past in such a negative way but I speak of Nightmare Moon. A pure soul like yourself turning because of circumstances. If you had only had a little more information you might have not turned so… dark." The mist pony felt the hate coming from Luna. _

_Luna didn't show the emotion but she didn't need to show it to feel it. "This is completely different situation. You are trying to deceive Heart into believing that he is a failure. That is not the wonderful pony he truly is." _

_The mist pony continued to try and twist Luna's emotions. "You didn't think he was so wonderful when he stole your power or when he threatened you precious husband over and over again. Don't lie to us Luna. We can feel your hate. It is our power. The changelings think they feel emotions but they are a single creature. They can only feel the emotions near them or if one of the others does. We can feel everything in a wide range. We can feel the hate over an entire continent. Even trapped in Heart we can feel it." _

_Luna was done talking to the windigos. "I have things to do. I will not sit here and listen to you while you try to lie to me. You are evil and we will stop you. More importantly, Heart will stop you."_

_The mist pony's face turned to anger. "We will turn this entire kingdom to nothing but a hunk of ice!" _

_Luna smiled at their anger. "You are nothing compared to Heart. Without him you are nothing. Without you he could easily be one of the greatest ponies in history." Luna left Heart's mind and the windigos._

As time passed Heart's Vision slowly gave the old rulers responsibilities. After Luna came Discord. Heart said that Discord would assist Heart by discovering and correcting magical disturbances. It took three months for this to occur. In that time Heart had did his best to keep the windigos in check and correct his wrongs. Little happened during this time. Heart received thanks from the single mother that he had talked to so long ago.

The next three months he spent convincing the Lanterns that Cadence was a wonderful pony and declared that she would go around Equestria spreading love. Something that Heart said he was too busy to do. He was successfully integrating the old rulers to their positions one by one.

The last month Sun Petal became increasingly concerned for Heart. She noticed that he was acting differently. It had now been nearly nine months since Heart discovered about the Windigos, as well as that Scootaloo had been pregnant. In fact she had just finished giving birth.

Heart stood by her side as the nurse gave Scootaloo the baby. "What will you name him?" Heart and Scootaloo had discussed many names over the time and never found one that fit. They both looked at their colt. Something seemed to control them as they both spoke the name. "Dismal."

Both Scootaloo and Heart did not know where the name come from but it seemed right. They couldn't explain why but it fit their colt. They both stared at their child. Heart felt overwhelmed with pride and fear. Scootaloo was so happy she began to cry.

Upon returning to Canterlot Castle Heart told everypony that he was going to take a break for a while and devote himself to being a parent. He told them that he would choose some pony to take his place in the absence.

He had gathered all of the old rulers as well as his top Beacons to decide who would gain the honor.

Petal volunteered. "I would love to honor you Heart. I would lead in the direction that you would see fit."

Chaotic looked at Heart and spoke up. "Maybe a pony with a better understanding of pony politics and the experience of running a kingdom should be chosen? You know I have been by your side and know what you want for this kingdom better then most. and I have experience dealing with both the Lanterns and the ponies who choose not to be. so if you should see fit I can report to you on only the very important topics that you would wish to know of first hoof." Chaotic spoke with choice words knowing that Petal would go insane that he said anything in the first place. he just hoped Heart knew better then putting that crazy colt killer in charge of many ponies that ask worse questions and speak worse of Heart. that would just be a massacre.

Heart had planned just that. "I think that Chaotic would be a fit substitute."

Petal had a face of disbelief. "What!? How can you choose him? How? He has caused many problems while he was here and boldly stated you were wrong. He is not the pony to enact your will. He will make the old choices. The choices that you said were not enough before."

Heart tried to calm the earth pony. "Calm down Petal. He has experience and he has seen how I rule he will make the right choices and if he doesn't know the answer he will come to me."

It didn't work. "No! What is happening to you? You have been so different lately." Petal pointed to the old rulers. "You treat them like they are in charge. You treat us. Your loyal Beacons like we don't belong. I'm concerned. I feel as if they have done something to you, like they're brainwashing you or something. I understand not picking me, but not picking any Beacon? None of us are worthy? I personally have spent years listening to you and taking everything to heart. Why are you picking them over your family?"

Heart didn't like the position he was in. His Beacons watched carefully waiting to see how he would react, same as the old rulers. Heart couldn't let Petal believe that he was being tricked by Chaotic or the others. She would take action and many ponies could be hurt or killed. Heart cleared his throat. "Fine Petal. You may lead in my place. I still have faith in my Beacons. I was simply picking Chaotic because he had experience, but if it means so much to you than you can have the position."

Petal bowed. "Thank you my king."

"You may all go your separate ways." Heart looked over to Chaotic and motioned for him to follow. They left the room together. Once everypony had dispersed Heart began to speak. "I am sorry I had to do that."

Chaotic shrugged. "It was what needed to be done to keep peace. you were between a bitch and a hard place. so its fine, but I will be making sure she doesn't kill every pony that asks a question. i may not have openly stopped you from killing those that most deserved it. but i will openly stop her from killing innocents. this is just a warning for when im sure it will come to pass and you must choose who was in the right. i honestly hope it doesn't come to this, but you know i don't trust her because of her radical thinking. but there are no hard feelings on this choice. it had to be done and i will still be next to the throne to make sure things don't get out of hoof. so go be a proud father. you have earned that right. and if you ever need help or advice just let me or Luna know and we will help how ever we can."

"I hope the others see it like you do. I'm not as worried as you are. Petal can take things a little far yes, but she does want good. She is loyal as well." Heart left to see Scootaloo.

Petal had heard nothing of their conversation. She walked next to Chaotic. "I don't know what you are doing to my king but I will not stand for it. If I learn that you have done anything to his mind I will kill you, You may be an alicorn but you are not invincible."

Chaotic just shook his head and spoke in a fact like tone. "Threaten me all you want. we both know that you wouldn't get close enough to kill me if you tried, and that includes if you try to use Luna or the foals. I have them protected and on order to kill you if you try and hurt them. I have done nothing but try to help Heart. You can have a different point of view but still trust and follow someone. and you can disagree with some things and agree with others. That is how any relationship or friendship works. If you do not believe me then you know nothing of friendship or true love. now I must go help a few of the changelings that asked for my help." then Chaotic left without looking at Petal.

Petal didn't get angry. She stayed calm. "It seems you need a lesson." Petal went about her business.

Heart went to his room where Scootaloo was waiting. She had not laid her eyes off the child since they came home. To everypony else it was just another kid. To her it was a treasure.

Heart came into the room quietly but was still shushed by Scootaloo. He simple shook his head. She was on the bed laying next to the foal. She watched him admiring him. Heart thought it was a little ridiculous. Heart didn't see the child like she did. He saw it more as a responsibility that he would fail to uphold.

Scootaloo received her wish to have the foal have a unique pattern like Heart's coat. The unicorn child had a black coat with orange lines running from his eyes down his sides, and swirled around his legs. The pattern looked different than Heart's in multiple ways. His orange outlined his eyes and ran down his legs, but it did not continue through his tail like Heart's.

Heart slid into the bed. He was on the baby's opposite side and it laid between Scootaloo and Heart. Scootaloo being on the right and Heart on the left. Heart spoke softly not to wake his kid. "You know you don't have to watch him constantly."

Scootaloo whispered back angrily. "I will watch him all I want. I birthed him and he is mine to watch."

Heart chuckled lightly and responded in a sarcastic tone. "And I didn't help at all."

"You sure didn't. You might as well have been on vacation."

Heart pointed to the sleeping child. "This thing wouldn't be here if it wasn't for me."

Scootaloo squinted. "You didn't go through any pain. The only thing you felt was pleasure. Don't call him a thing either. Dismal is our child." Scootaloo mesmerized at Dismal. "Our beautiful child." She used her wing to pet his short purple mane.

Heart felt stupid now for not calling Dismal by his name. Even though he meant nothing by it. Heart looked at the foal. He had a sinking feeling in his chest. He wondered whether he would be good enough. He was reminded of his father. How even though he was a loving father, was not there. He remembered his mother. Heart eyed Scootaloo as he thought. He did not doubt Scootaloo. He knew she would always be a loving mother. He knew she would always be there unlike his own.

Heart didn't want to be the same failure as his parents were. By happenstance or by choice. A voice called out to him. A voice he had heard on several occasions but not in a long time.

'_You will fail. This child will be as fucked up as you are. It will turn into a disgrace just like you if it continues to live. That being if it lives. Knowing you it will more than likely die before it can have a life.' _

Heart ignored the voices. He was swiftly punished. The windigos sent pulses of pain through his body. He resisted and got out of his bed. He ran for the door. His knees buckled sending his face hurling towards the floor. His entire body produced a loud thud as it contacted the ground. The noise was loud enough to wake Dismal. Scootaloo saw what happened but was comforting the baby. She was shocked and yelled over Dismal's crying. "Heart, what are you doing!?"

Heart didn't answer. He just tried to stand but failed. He tried again, making progress this time but ultimately falling back to the ground from the pain. The windigos controlled his body. He had to lie there and take the pain. His mind faded.

_Heart stood up. He looked at Scootaloo who was standing and cradling Dismal in her wing. Heart slowly walked over to the frightened pegasus. He smacked her across the face with his hoof. She fell over the bed still cradling the foal. Heart did not stop. He positioned himself over her and pressed his hooves over her throat. _

_Scootaloo screamed at him. "What are you doing!? Heart stop!" _

_Heart did not stop. He pressed down harder. Scootaloo began to wheeze. _

_She grasped for air begging for her husband to stop. "Stop Heart. Stop. Please stop." _

_Heart voided her words and pushed harder on her throat. She could not longer say anything. Dismal wailed making Heart agitated. Scootaloo's eyes dripped tears as her love crushed the life out of her. A few more moments and the pegasus' drifted into unconsciousness and then into death's embrace. _

_Heart showed no emotion. He looked to his helpless child laying next to the corpse._

"HEART!" Heart was shaken awake by Scootaloo. "Heart!"

Heart gained awareness. "What is going on?"

Scootaloo had a worried look on her face. "You tell me. We were laying in bed and the next thing you get up and fell to the floor."

Heart let out a breath of relief realizing it was not real. "The windigos decided to give me a treat. I am sorry if I scared you. They may try all they want but I will not break."

Scootaloo did her best to give Heart all the confidence she could. "I know you won't. You are too strong for that. Tell them to buzz off. I need my precious HV to help me fly."

Heart smiled with Scootaloo's silly words. "It has been a long time since you have called me HV, and even longer since I helped you fly. Don't worry Scoot. I will never let you down. I don't care what gets in my way. NOTHING will ever harm you."

"I love you."

"I love you too." Heart felt a twinge of guilt. He said that he would not let anything harm Scootaloo but he questioned if he was indeed strong enough to stop these spirits. After all, they just brought him to his knees.

In other parts of the castle.

Luna was in her and Chaotic's room napping. The door creaked open. She stirred but did not wake up. A pony slipped in carrying a saddlebag. The pony set it down and sorted trough. They found what they were looking for. A bottle of unknown liquid. The pony had a breathing apparatus on. The pony opened the bottle and spread the colorless, odorless liquid all over the room.

The pony was quiet and Luna was too asleep to be bother by it. The pony finished their mission and exited.

Chaotic felt a twinge of worry and felt something off about Luna. so he teleported outside the room and knocked on it. Luna didn't answer and Chaotic got even more worried. so he slowly opened the door and saw she was asleep but looking off. so he ran a scan and found a poison in the room. it wasn't a fatal one, but one that shouldn't be messed with. Chaotic was just glad Moon wasn't home at this point. so he cleared the room of the vile toxin and ran to Luna and woke her up. "Luna wake up. you have been fed a toxin. I need you to wake up and look at me so I can see how bad it is."

Luna woke up slowly and looked sick to her stomach. "wh-what happened?" Chaotic's eyes were worried as he spoke softly. "Some pony sneaked in here and gave you a toxin in the room. it wont kill you, thank god, but it will make you sick for a while. but I will let Zacora know now and she will be able to cancel most of the effects." then Chaotic Called for Tia and Discord. they came running into the room and were told what was going on. Discord didn't wait for the entire explanation, he brought Zacora to them with a snap. then Chaotic told her what was going on and what was used.

Zacora was surprised and told him that she would help how ever she could. Chaotic was sure who did this, but used the same time spell to see who for sure did it. and was surprised at what he saw. it was not Petal but a fellow follower of Heart. it was Lightning Hoof that had snuck in and poisoned his love. "They will both will pay for this. one way or another. but first we show Heart and see what he thinks, and if Petal stays in control any longer." Then Chaotic made sure Luna was ok, and that Cebby knew what was going on for when the kids got out of school. then he went back to the castle to look for Heart.

Chaotic found him in his room with Scootaloo. Heart laying in the floor from his episode. Chaotic didn't know why he was in the floor. he wanted Hearts help but had to at least make sure Heart was ok before asking for his help. "Heart are you ok? If so I need your help. Can you come with me?"

Heart knew Chaotic wouldn't disturb him if it wasn't important and didn't want to worry him, so acted like nothing happened.. "I can come help."

The two went to the throne room. On the way Chaotic explained what happened to Luna. Heart didn't want to believe that Lightning would do this. "This is Lightning. I would understand Petal doing this but Lightning? You really believe Lightning would do this?"

The two enter the throne room where Lightning was talking to Petal. Plecia was off to the side minding her own business.

Chaotic had to use his training of emotions so that he did not out right attack either of the ponies at the throne. "So telling her how well your little trip to My room went are you?"

Lightning looked at Chaotic confused. "What are you talking about?"

Chaotic's lip twitched a bit, but he kept calm otherwise. "You should know you are not a good lair. and that I have proof that you were there. time spells are great for seeing who did certain things, kinda like who set a bomb or who poisoned my wife." Chaotic's eyes narrowed at him at the end of the statement.

Lightning had no clue what Chaotic was talking about. "I really don't know what your talking about now. Was Luna poisoned?"

Chaotic was getting annoyed but kept his composer for the time being. "You should know. but if you insist on saying it wasn't you then how do you explain this?" Chaotic showed them exactly what he saw with a hologram spell showing Lightning sneaking in and opening the bottle with, now colored. poison spreading though the room. "Luckily it was only a toxin to make her sick for a bit. colorless and odorless, but not undetectable by scanning spells. so please tell me if this is you or not." Chaotic had an alternative reason for asking this question. he watched all in the room as he waited for Lightning's answer.

Lightning watched it all. He knew that he didn't do it. "I don't know who that is, but it is not me. I did not do this. There is plenty of spells that could hide whoever really did it. That is if Chaotic here isn't just making up some shit because he sore about Petal being put in charge, not him. You have always had something against the Beacons. Why don't you stop blaming us for everything and find out who really did it."

Chaotic shook his head. "You should know better than think I have anything against any of the Beacons, minus Petal. and the only reason I have a problem with her is what she did to that colt, and she keeps threatening my family. just like you get pissed and kill those that threaten Heart. I may have been king once, but now I'm not, and even I have a limit to my forgiveness. but I did feel your signature in that room. so may I check something? I will not hurt you and Heart can make sure I don't do anything to you or your mind. I have a suspicion, but I need your help to find out who actually did this. it will prove what actually happened. or it will at least give me something to start with. so may I prove you are innocent?"

Lightning didn't trust Chaotic but he had nothing to hide. "Go ahead, as long as no pony is harmed."

Chaotic shook his head. "Only when I find out for sure who did this will anypony be hurt if then. now sit and hold still I am going to use another time spell. this one will show everything you saw during the time span that this happened. if it shows you were there your in trouble. if it shows you doing something else we know you were framed. so let us see what happens." Chaotic started the spell and everyone in the room saw what he saw. The memory had him in the meeting and going about his business. It seem to randomly cut out and the next thing seen was him walking into the throne room. "So a chunk is missing... So it might have done it, but if so not in the way I had originally thought."

Lightning was a little defensive. "I may have done it or I might have not. It seems there isn't much evidence. Mostly circumstantial. What is your brilliant plan now?"

Chaotic was starting to understand what was going on. "You certainly did it Lightning, but it was not under your own will. it was your body but as you saw, your mind had checked out. it means that you had a spell placed on you to make you do it. someone made you do it so you personally are not at fault. but now I have a starting place. the next step is to follow the magical trace that was left on you when the spell was cast. Heart you special talent is seeing magic cores and their traces, so could you please identify it for us please?"

Heart wished he could help but there wasn't much he could do. "I can see cores Chaotic, I can't trace the spell like a scent. Now if the pony was around. I could cross analyze his or her magic but that is about it. If you can get me the pony you think did it, I can tell you if you are right."

Chaotic gave a sigh but then thought about it. "Can we get everypony that was in that meeting room. that is where your memories cut out. so it had to happen in that room or shortly after. if we get everypony that was in that room. you can do the cross exam them. and if the ones in the meeting didn't they might have seen who did."

"Let's do it." They did so. Heart called the Beacons that were in the meeting. Heart noticed that every ponies memories showed Lightning going off alone. No pony would have seen what happened to Lightning. It also meant that no pony at the meeting was responsible. Heart checked every pony's core. None of them matched the spell's signature.

To Heart is screamed dead end. He hoped that Chaotic would see something else that could lead them to the ones responsible.

Chaotic was slightly annoyed but wasn't going to give up on this. "Ok so we go to where they last saw him and check around to see if we find anything that leads us t them. and if nothing else that time spell should show us where he went and who did this. lets go." Chaotic turned and started to walk to the last place Lightning was seen walking away.

They continued to trace Lightning's day with the time spell. Nothing odd seemed to happen. He just went about his business. He received letters about Lantern business, checked on Lantern projects. Set training programs for the royal guards. Nothing odd happened. He acted normal. At one point he went to the castle's lab where he found the toxin and proceeded to poison Luna's room. It made no sense. Nothing seemed to trigger his action.

Chaotic was surprised at this but still wasn't going to give up. "So the pony that did this had to have been close enough to him to do this. so it either happened with the ponies he saw during the day or the pony met with him and something in the meeting triggered it. lets start with the main ponies you met with during the day. mainly those that were within a five meter range. if that doesn't work. I'm going into your head to find out who did it. and no that wouldn't hurt you either."

They did as the plan dictated. There wasn't a lot of ponies to check since Lightning mostly dealt with pegasi. There was a few unicorns that Heart retrieved and cross compared their cores to be sure. None of them matched. The day was growing old and they were running out of options. Heart spoke to Chaotic. "Let's enter his mind. He has no memories but maybe we can dig them up wherever they are hiding."

Chaotic agreed and sat next to Lightning with Heart. "i am ready if he is. i just want to know who used him and why. and why they wanted to make my wife sick."

Lightning trusted Heart. "Go ahead."

Chaotic and Heart entered Lightning's mind. Heart's first action was to try to access Lightning's memories. Heart could usually bring up memories that the pony had forgotten or put away but he received nothing. It was as if the memory didn't exist at all.

Heart wanted to see if Chaotic had a better plan. "The memory isn't here. Without finding the pony or even possible pony I can't tell who did this. You have any bright ideas?"

Chaotic nodded and his horn lit up a second before a blurry image started to appear. "The magic signature outside the body and mind just looks like a wave or color. inside the mind and body you can see a residual image of pony that cast it. you keep focused on the memories that should be there and the spell that was cast. that will allow me to get this image into view. it wont be totally clear as the moon, but it should be clear enough to actually see who did this. then when we have an image we will know who to look for."

The image was not one that Heart recognized. It was female, the coat was tan with a dull brown mane and tail. The cutie mark was some kind of parchment. Heart tried to think of who it could be but no pony came to mind. "I don't know who it is. It is certainly no Beacon. I would know if she was."

Chaotic didn't know this mare either, but now he knew how to find her. "Heart i am sending out a message to all the changeling to let me know if they see or know her. that way we can find her quickly. then we find out some answers. now lets get out of his mind and thank him for letting us do this."

Heart agreed. They stopped casting the spell and left Lightning's thoughts. Chaotic gave a small bow to Lightning and then spoke in a thankful tone. "My wife and I thank you for all of your help. I know you don't like me much, and to me it makes it all that more important. so thank you and I am sorry that I thought for a second that it was you who did this. so please forgive me, even if the evidence was against you. I should have known better then judge before the evidence was for sure who did this. I am in your dept for your help."

Lightning smirked doing his best to seem cool. "Don't worry about it. I did actually do it so let's just call it even."

Chaotic then entered the hive mind to tell the changelings to look for the pony. He received a hasty response. It was a Lantern. Her name was Recollection. She liked to stay in the Canterlot Castle library. Heart and Chaotic made their way there and looked for the mare.

They found her reading. She looked at Heart and Chaotic with a expression of boredom. "My king. Chaotic Love. Is there something I can help you with?"

Chaotic kept calm and nodded before speaking. "Yes, you can explain why you took control of Lightning and made him poison my wife?"

The mare looked at Chaotic as if he was stupid. "I did no such thing. I don't even know who you are talking about. I don't care about you are your wife. If you would like I may be able to perform a spell that could rid her of the poison. If you are done accusing me of crimes I didn't commit I would like to finish me book." The mare looked down at her book and continued to read not phased by the accusation. She didn't seemed worried. She didn't even seem to dislike Chaotic. It seemed that she just didn't care, her books were more important than anything Chaotic had to say.

Chaotic was starting to lose his calm faster than normal. so he lifted the pony in the air with magic by her neck. "You are a convincing liar. but both Heart and i saw the proof that you cast the spell on Lightning. we saw him use the toxin to make her sick. so you can either tell me why you did it and made him do it, or we can just punish you now. i would recommend speaking. i may be nice for the most part, but any that threaten my family are in for a world on pain. now talk!"

The pony didn't show fear like most would. She actually growled at Chaotic. "You stupid alicorn. I already told you. I did nothing and I don't even know this Lightning! I have been in this library all day. I don't have time to prance around putting spells on ponies or poisoning others. If you have such a problem with her getting poisoned maybe you should hire some taste tester instead of bothering ponies that are busy! Now put me down!" The unicorn mare let out a burst of magic temporarily stopping Chaotic's magic. He could simple pick her back up but the mare seemed to think he wouldn't.

Chaotic stopped and then gave a wicked smile. "Fine, you want to play around with the truth. then why don't you tell it for the rest of your life. starting now." Chaotic's horn flashed and then he sat down and waited. "So now will you tell me why your magical aura was on him telling us you cast the spell, or not?"

The mare became more angered. "It obviously means I cast the spell. Any pony with any knowledge of spells will tell you that but I don't know why it is there. I have been here all day and haven't left since I came in this morning. I even had my food delivered. There is no possible way I could cast it is if he came here. And he never came here! I would have some memory of it if he did. But I don't so why don't your handsome self somewhere else. And take the king, with his weird coat pattern with you as well." The mare's words were her own but they were also whatever stray little thought that came to mind.

Chaotic sighed. "Then you were used as well. Hold still." then Chaotic took her in his magic and did the memory spell.

He was disappointed as he saw nothing. Heart blamed himself a little. "I'm sorry Chaotic but you won't get any information here. I put a protection spell on the environment. This library is basically indestructible. It can't be manipulated by any kind of spell. I did it when I had all the powers so I don't thing even Discord's chaos magic can overcome it. This may be the end of our investigation. I'm sorry. I can put guards around your family. Or you can. If I do it I will make sure that they only listen to me, no other pony. I will ensure this never happens again."

Chaotic was starting to lose his normal cool. "the guards will help but this isn't over. we are going to play leap frog and this spell isn't going to stop me. just like nothing would stop you if this was Scootaloo." Chaotic's eyes started to glow and the world around him started to warp. "This isn't over until I found out who did this. one way or another. I think its time to bring back some forgotten memories. even if they are erased there are still images of what happened, like a computer from my old world. there are always traces that we can put back together. even if its not the nicest thing to feel. you will have a headache after this i am sorry to say." Then his magic warped around the mare holding her still and the memory spell started. then when it spiked it rewound to the point it started and then slowly filled in pieces like a puzzle. it was a slow process but it was working. after about a half hour the memory was mainly complete with only a few pixels left missing. "now lets watch and see who started this shall we?"

Chaotic watched very carefully. No pony came and talked to Recollection but some pony did deliver mail. Chaotic thought nothing of it until Lightning came in holding a letter. Chaotic went back in the memory and read the letter.

'_To Recollection. _

_I understand that you want Beacon status. I am willing to give you this if you help with this task. When Lightning Hoof comes to you, he will being carrying a letter. First burn that letter as well as yours then erase his ,as well as your own memory of this. He will have his own task to complete but I need you to complete yours. You will not remember this letter but you will be rewarded._

_-Heart's Vision_

Two clues were given. One was that the letter was sealed with a Beacon stamp, not Heart's personal stamp. Secondly was the fact that this pony knew that Recollection wanted Beacon status and the pony who sent this believes that they can give it.

Chaotic knew that Heart did not do this because Heart was not that kind of pony. Chaotic was angered that he didn't get a direct answer but Heart had an idea. "I got a plan. The letter said that they would reward the pony right? So if we wait we can see which one of my beacons asks for Recollection to be a Beacon. It will point to the pony responsible."

Chaotic already had an idea who it was anyway but thought the idea would be the final coffin. "I already have an idea who it is but lets do your plan. that will make us both sure if i am right. and you thanks for the help." Dan let the mare go and helped her with her headache. "so we know she didn't know what she was doing fully. but it seems that Lightning isn't as innocent as we thought before. that letter must have asked him to do it. after your plan plays out we get to talk to him again. Thank you for the help with this my friend. and i partly hope that i am wrong in my thinking of who did this."

Heart was doing what was right. Even if it was one of his Beacons it doesn't excuse the endangerment of Luna or Chaotic. It was even more agitating to Heart since Luna was officially working for Heart. Heart did his best to protect her. He stationed guards on strict orders that they only took orders from Heart himself, Luna, and Chaotic. Heart also put a protective spell on the room that destroyed any harmful liquids that tried to enter the room Meaning no pony could bring in poison.

With some patience, the pony responsible would be brought to justice. Heart brought the unfortunate news to Lightning and Petal, telling them that the investigation was a dead end. Afterwards Heart left and went about his regular business. Once out of sight, Petal grew a wicked smile. _'Gave that alicorn a scare. Maybe he will learn a little bit of humility.'_

**A/N: I realize that horse and human pregnancy time is different. None of yall better come at me for having it be 9 months because horses also don't fucking fly or use magic. In this exact instance I am throwing logic out the door.~ sci-fi**


	31. Taking initiative

**A/N: First off. Whoo hoo! Got to 30. Damn that means that this story is double the chapters of Heart's Tale. I mean it is over double the word length due to longer chapters. But I mean damn. This thing is the length of an actual novel. Whoever has read this far I applaud you. This thing is LONG, for fan fiction standards anyway. I know there is some long stories out there but a whole lot are 20k and under. This thing is like 5 times longer. And to think, I don't get paid for this shit. The only payment I get is bringing readers a good story. But to know that I have done that you must review. Just give me a PM saying something if you don't want to review. I just want to hear your opinion. A simple "Hey you did a good job. I liked your story." Would suffice. This story has been A LOT of fucking work. Give me something.~ sci-fi**

Chapter 30:taking initiative

Two weeks have past sense Sun Petal was chosen to lead in Heart's Vision's place.

Chaotic Love walked outside in the Canterlot Castle training grounds. He watched as a small group of ponies trained. Chaotic had seen this group train before but they had a new instructor. They did as their normal routine had done, spare each other to have live opponents. The difference was at the end. One of the ponies was taken down. He looked horrified as he realized he had lost. The instructor walked over. The instructor was a dull unicorn mare with a mane and tail that was cut extremely short. The only way Chaotic knew it was a female was the body structure. She took the pony by the throat with magic. He squirmed trying to escape. He failed and was secured to a four small posts. The posts were short and only purpose was to hold his hooves in place.

The instructor took out a whip and began lashing the pony at his sides. The instructor began yelling at the loser. "You are pathetic! You expect to be a elite soldier when you lose like that! Your dead! What just happened was you died! You are lucky you are in training and not in the field!" The instructor repeatedly whipped the pony.

Chaotic looked around and noticed that the ponies with scars from the whip were fighting harder than the unmarked ponies. One fight particularly caught his eye. It was the only fight with two scared ponies fighting. The scared were not only marked but heavily scared. They had been through multiple lashings The other fights would end once one pony was subdued. This fight was different. One pony, a pegasus was on the ground but still fighting. The earth pony on top smacking him but the pegasus was using his wings to block and his front hooves to hit the earth pony in the face. Neither one wanted to give, both bled and kept fighting. Blow after blow struck but no pony conceded. The earth pony power through his foe's strikes. He sped up and nailed the pegasus' wings to the dirt with his hind hooves. Leaving the pegasus' face exposed. The earth pony let loose ramming his hooves into his enemies face. The earth pony only stopped when he realized that the pegasus was rendered unconscious.

The earth pony stood over the pegasus a victor. He was rewarded as a pony brought him water and a snack. The earth pony walked off and the pegasus was dragged to the posts for when he woke up.

Most of the ponies had finished fighting and were now either resting or waiting in line for punishment.

The instructor turned towards the line after giving an assistant the lash. "You have two options. You can wait for the punishment OR, you can fight another loser for redemption. Be warned that if you lose this fight you will receive triple the punishment."

The losers looked around debating whether to risk it or not. One of the only scared ones picked a scrawny unmarked.

The unmarked pony refused. "No! I don't want to fight again."

The instructor butted in. "There is no refusing! You were chosen by the enemy and now must fight. Do or die!"

The scarred pony had an additional mark. On his chest was the mark of a murderer.

Across the yard was another group of ponies. Chaotic could tell from the marks on their sides that they were part of the same program. These were not fighting they were copying their instructor.

The instructor led. "I am nothing."

The group followed in one voice. "I am nothing."

"Heart's Vision is my one true leader."

"Heart's Vision is my one true leader.

The group continued to repeat piece by piece the following. "He and his heirs are worthy of the crown and no others. If he or his line are dethroned I shall take it upon myself to restore or avenge them. I shall feel no pain of my own and only that of the kingdom's. I will be Heart's sword and shield. I will obey Heart's every word no matter what they may be. My life is now forfeited and belongs to Heart. If my life ends by his command than I have fulfilled my oath, nothing more. I am in debt to Heart for everything that I have been given. My debt is only repaid and my service finished upon my death. For our savior, Heart's Vision."

Chaotic had a hard time believing it. "She is turning them into Nazis! Heart has to know about this. this is not good." then Chaotic went to find Heart to tell him about this, and he would even explain what Nazis were and what they caused, just to get his point across.

Heart was spending time with Scootaloo and Dismal. He heard a knock on the door. He left his smiling wife to open the door to a worried looking Chaotic. Heart had not been bother for quiet some time and expected something to be wrong. "What is it this time?"

Chaotic looked over at Scootaloo, then back to Heart. "It would be best if we had some privacy."

Heart agreed teleported them outside into the castle garden. "Yes?"

Chaotic explained to Heart about what he saw and what Nazis were. Heart didn't like what he heard about the Nazis but that had the effect of a story. What had an effect on Heart was the brutality of the training of his ponies.

Heart wanted to be sure about what Chaotic saw. "Are you sure it wasn't some sort of punishment? If you are then what do you want to do about it?"

Chaotic nodded. "it was a punishment for losing and not being good enough. with the words you are nothing and you would be dead. so yes they were being trained this way. there was then a line to have this punishment for losing. and then the offer of triple or nothing was offered and the biggest loser chose the weakest against his will. just so he would get out of it and the newer pony would get three times the punishment. and he already had the mark of a killer so who knows if that pony even survived to make it to the punishment. So I would look over it and see what you think to do. it never leads to anything good. it leads to massacres in the name on one pony or thing. and the conditioning that the ones that were not fighting. all those killings without thinking or thought will be in your name. and I know neither of us want that. I can show you where if you want."

It didn't sound believable to Heart. "Show me."

Chaotic did has Heart asked. They went to the training grounds and Heart saw for himself what Chaotic was talking about. Heart didn't like what he saw and approached one of the instructors. "What is going on here?"

The instructor was not planning on a visit and was surprised by Heart. "Training, sir."

"What kind of training is this? This just seems like abuse. You aren't even teaching them any kind of fighting techniques They might as well be getting into bar fights."

The instructor looked back to the trainees. "Walk with me king, you may come as well Chaotic since I am sure you were the one who told the king about this." The instructor led them inside to the sector of the castle dedicated to the royal guards. The instructor had her own small office. She motioned for the two to take a seat. They did. "I have been a trainer for years, even before Chaotic was king. Yeah, yeah I'm not responsible for combat training. There has been many ponies in charge of that. There was even a dog responsible at one point."

The instructor looked at Chaotic as she said that last line. "I am responsible for a different type of training. I instill certain traits into ponies. I made sure that the royal guards were loyal. It is very hard to do such a thing. Trying to give a pony a trait that is not their own already, is a challenge."

Heart could understand trying to get a pony to be loyal but he didn't think that this pony could do that. "How are you suppose to make a pony loyal?"

The pony didn't care to go into detail. "It is a complicated process but I am one of very few ponies that can do it. A little bit of magic and a lot of obstacle creation. I am the best at it."

"What is the training you are doing now, because I have never seen any training like this so it isn't loyalty?"

"This, this is new. I was not asked to instill just loyalty. I was asked for a certain kind of soldier. One that would never give up. That would serve the king to the fullest. That is what I am planning to give. Before the best soldier were defined by their skill in combat. I think that is wrong. I think the best soldiers are not how well they fight but how committed they are. That is what the new training is for. To make them committed to you king."

Heart was done talking about what she is trying to do. "Who told you to do this?"

"Sun Petal. She said she anted elite soldiers for you."

Heart thanked the mare for her time and left with Chaotic to see Petal. Chaotic commented on the situation. "I see she is taking to being in charge already, and that's never a good sign."

Heart felt the need to defend his Beacon. "Maybe she is just taking an initiative." Heart doubted his own words.

Petal was in her office signing papers. She usually was not there so Heart had to ask around for her until somepony pointed him in the right direction. He enter the small office. Petal was sitting reading over documents and doing her duty of filling for Heart when he entered with Chaotic. "What the heck are you doing Petal? I just got back from seeing some cruel training and found out that you ordered it. Why would you do that and why wouldn't you tell me?"

Petal looked up at Heart, showing no regret nor anger. "I did it so that we would have more ponies that could do something if something went wrong. I didn't tell you because I thought that you might not approve."

Heart was slightly angered by his subordinates' audacity. "If I wouldn't approve than why would you do it?"

"Because you don't approve it because you don't see the need for it. I am only making a few just incase. They might be needed in the future."

Chaotic shook his head in slight annoyance. "So war might be coming in a million years. so lets just make mindless monsters to kill without thinking or having a conscious now. then make them only loyal to one thing or pony and give them control over their lives with no care to who they are or what they might have wanted to be. and SO much for being loyal and knowing what your king wouldn't want for that matter. hiding things and undermining him and its only been how long?"

Petal was really starting to hate Chaotic. "I am not undermining Heart. I am supporting him. These ponies will only act for their king, Heart. They will not be deprived of thought or conscious. They will just obey Heart's orders over anything else. You should have no problem with this as long as you believe in Heart as you say you do old king."

Chaotic nodded. "Oh I trust Heart with my life. its you who keep going around him that I have a problem with. and I have seen what soldiers like this can be used for in my old world. it never ends up being a good thing. Even if they only listen to Heart and he keeps them under control. I am betting they will listen to his Beacons if they say it was under his orders. and that is the part that worries me. and to be blunt, its you that I can see doing just that and other innocent ponies dieing under Heart's name when he wasn't the one to give the order."

Petal's face told Chaotic that she was pissed but her voice was calm and level headed. "I would not kill innocent ponies. They must have a reason to die. The soldiers only take orders from Heart or take action if Heart or his family are in danger. There is only one exception. If Heart is killed or his line, they are to avenge him or die trying. Total commitment. They do or die."

Chaotic had to hide a smirk as he spoke again. "oh like foals that ask questions? and so they are mindless heartless slaves that kill on command? and that's a good thing?"

Petal shook her head. "Your stupidity astounds me. Where would they be heartless? They will listen to Heart's every order. So unless you are calling Heart, heartless than you don't make any since. And if Heart didn't order for their death than they wouldn't kill. The only time that they kill without order is if Heart is killed and they only do that because Heart cannot order them otherwise. As long as Heart or one of his heirs is around there is nothing to worry about."

Chaotic knew this argument would go no further. "Heart knows I think he has more heart than most and trust his judgment. but when those things are in the field and he isn't. that's where they will show the darkness you neglect. but we both know you won't listen to reason, especially if it comes from me. so I am done with this conversation. Heart as always it is your decision on what to do. you have heard both sides so you do as you wish." Chaotic turned to walk away from Petal, not being able to look at her any longer without losing his temper.

Heart was glad Chaotic ended it. He was getting tired of the arguing himself. "I think both of you are right. I will make a compromise. Petal can keep the ponies she is already training and gets to keep training them but no more will be initiated. That means I want to know how many there are right now. If nothing comes up and they seem to have no use we can make them be normal guards or something."

Petal was happy with the decision. "Yes sir, I will get a list of names and make sure no more volunteers are accepted."

Heart looked confused. "Volunteers?"

Petal smiled even though her emotions were really anger towards Chaotic. "Yes all of them volunteered. They all understand that they could never go back to being normal ponies before they signed up."

"Very well." Heart left Petal. Chaotic followed Heart. As they walked together Heart asked Chaotic a question. "Do you want to go see Dismal? I am going to go see Scoot anyway I just wondered if you want to tag along. If your busy it is ok if you don't go."

Chaotic smiled at the idea. "I wouldn't mind seeing the little guy. thank you for the offer, and thank you for that decision as well. but for now lets just have fun with family, shall we? oh and if you ever need a foal sitter, I know a filly that has grown up to be very good with younger kids."

Heart liked the idea but didn't think that time would be anytime soon. "I think Moon is just a tad young for that and I don't think that Scootaloo will let Dismal out of her reign anytime soon. I'm lucky if I get to hold him for too long. Be warned, Scootaloo is not afraid of anything when it comes to her baby."

Chaotic laughed at Heart's expression. "I think I can handle Scootaloo."

Heart blew it off and the two went to see Heart's son.

**A/N: This chapter is short. I think I will post two today to make up for it. (I'm really just looking for an excuse to post more) Everyone have a pleasant day. ~sci-fi**


	32. Defibrillators

**A/N: This is an interesting chapter. Read and see I speak the truth. ~sci-fi**

Chapter 31: Defibrillators

Heart's Vision had been out shopping for baby supplies. He wanted to do it on his own . He wanted to feel like a true father. _'I hope I got the right thing. I am sure they will be fine but Scoot might beat me if I messed up. It is great to see her so happy. I absolutely love it. Better hurry back or she will nag me.'_ Heart teleported to his room where he expected Scootaloo to be waiting for him smothering the baby with love.

Heart was disappointed when she wasn't there. He noticed that there was a note on the bed. He walked over causally, his first thought that Scootaloo went somewhere with Dismal. Heart was disappointed once again.

'_Hello false king. It is only a matter of time until you find this. You will be happy to know that we have your child and your wife. Did I say happy? I meant miserable. We have no plans of harming them unless you don't cooperate. We only require one thing, your life. We will be in touch._

_-Restorers of Harmony_

Heart felt his anger boil to the threshold. A pulse of magic erupted from him. Everything in the room flew towards the walls. The walls themselves cracked and shook under the force of Heart's anger. "I WILL KILL THEM ALL!" He bellowed in anger. Heart teleported to Chaotic Love's room. Chaotic was laying with Luna who was sleeping after a long night of protecting the dream of ponies. Heart cared nothing of how they felt. "GET UP! GET THE FUCK UP!" Heart snatched the blanket from the bed to try and quicken their reaction.

Chaotic formed a shield around him and Luna in an instant out of reaction to being woken up. then he realized what was going on. then he calmed even though Luna was pissed. "Heart, what's happened to make you do this. it can't be good so what's up?"

Heart's voice still held rage. "They took Scootaloo and Dismal! They kidnapped my family! Mother fucking scum! They took them! Get the others and tell them to meet me in the throne room."

Both Luna's and Chaotic's eyes grew wide and not another word was shared as they teleported away to get the rest of the old rulers and any that could be useful.

Heart stood in the throne room fuming with rage still. He paced trying to control the rage.

The others made it the throne room.

Celestia tried to calm him. "Heart calm down. What is wrong?"

Heart gave the alicorn the death stare. He unintentionally added magical force to his voice. "Everything is wrong! Every single FUCKING thing!" Celestia put up a barrier to block the force.

Another pony could have easily been flung back by the force. Sun Petal had never seen Heart this angry. "What is wrong my king?'

Heart gave Petal the same look. "They took my Scoot!" Heart stomped his hooves on the floor making the ground quake. "They took my love and my child!" Heart kept stomping creating cracks in the floor. "They took everything I love!" Heart stomped one more time creating two small craters from his front hooves.

Twilight Sparkle, Discord, Celestia, Chaotic Love, Luna, Nick, Lightning Hoof, Sun Petal, Plecia Nearctica , and choice Beacons all watched as Heart destroyed small pieces of the castle from sheer rage. His anger consuming him.

Chaotic took action and went into his Chaos berserk mode to take hold of Heart and calm him with a small spell, then talk to him. "Heart I know how you feel and i don't blame you for being pissed. but you need to calm down just long enough so that we can keep them safe and alive. and destroying this room wont do anything but make you worn out and more angry. and it wont help you make a good decision when the time comes. and all that will do is put them in more danger. so please, for them stay as calm as you can. they will make it through this one way or another. ok?"

With Heart's rage wisped away by Chaotic's spell, he was left with his sadness. Heart's eyes welled up and looked plain pitiful. His voice cracked as he approached the verge of tears. "But they're gone. I wasn't there for them. My son is not even a year old and I have already failed." The threshold broke as tears began to run down his face.

Twilight hated to see Heart like this. "It will be ok. We will help you put everything back to normal. But you need to tell us what is going on."

Heart examined the craters he had left in the floor. "I got a note when I came back from the store. It said that they took Scoot and Diz. They said that they wouldn't be harmed as long as I gave them my life."

Twilight thought it was ridiculous. "We can't do that. Did they say anything about where or when anything would take place?"

Heart was too absorbed in his own sadness to think logically. "I will pay. They are worth it. If I can give my life for theirs than I will."

Lightning slowly walked up to Heart and smacked him across the face. "Shut up. This is not time for that shit. If Scootaloo was here she would beat your ass black for saying stuff like that. Now get your head in the game."

Heart would have normally gotten pissed over getting hit but he was on a emotional rollercoaster right now and couldn't muster his rage back. "It didn't really say too much. It said something about being in contact."

Twilight brought some reason to the situation. "Then we should all stay calm and wait. They need Scootaloo and Dismal alive to what they want. They will not harm them in the meantime."

Heart didn't like it but there was nothing else for him to do. His voice was depressed from feeling so helpless. "I guess your right. We will wait to see what happens."

An hour passed and nothing happened. Heart's misery grew with every passing minute.

With no pony saying anything he was caught stuck in his own thoughts, where he was not alone. _'What am I going to do? I have to stop them, but I can't. I have no information and if I go snooping around they might decide to cut there losses.'_

A voice that was not his own echoed through Heart's mind. _'It seems that you have failed once more. Your little child will die before it even knows what life is.' _

Heart may have felt like shit but he knew what the voice as and didn't care to here. _'Shut up.' _

'_Don't tell us to shut up. We didn't let Scootaloo get captured. That was your fault. You failed your family not us.'_

'_I-I know.'_

'_Than don't blame others for your mistake. You failed, you and you alone. Take responsibility for your mistakes.' _

'_There was nothing I could do.' _

'_Yes there was. You could have prevented the whole thing. You should have made the ponies that took them fear you.' _

'_How would I have even known who they were?'_

'_You didn't need to. All you had to do was make sure that no pony wanted to stand up to. At the beginning of your kingship no pony hurt you. You have gone soft. You need to show your brutality. So that any pony who dares think that they can stand up to you will freeze with fear.' _

'_I can't do that. I gave my power to the others. Even if I wanted to I couldn't do it. The others would stop me before it began.' _

'_What if we told you there was a way? That we could give you the power?' _

Heart was suspicious. _'What is the catch?'_

Heart had no way of telling but the windigos were very pleased with his response. _'There is no catch. All we want in return is that you kill the ponies that stole your loved ones.'_

Heart had already planned on doing that so he had no problem with the agreement. _'Deal.'_

Hear was presented his opportunity. A pony came in and delivered a letter. The letter was from the ponies that called themselves The Restorers Of Harmony. The letter explained that they wanted to see no other pony anywhere near the dealing site. They would let Scootaloo and the child go after Heart submitted. They would then kill Heart and never bother Scootaloo and Dismal again. The letter contained an address for the deal to take place. Heart had read aloud for everypony.

Heart looked around. "What should we do?"

Petal slipped out of the room unnoticed. She had plans to put in place.

Chaotic stepped forward. "Let me go in your place. my changeling powers would make sure that they wouldn't know any different and then I can take them down before they had a chance to hurt Scootaloo or Dismal. that way the only life on the line is mine and not the kings or his families."

No pony liked that idea, especially Luna and Heart. Heart wouldn't let another pony be in danger rather than him. Heart became a little mad at the offer. "Hell no! I will not let you do that. If anypony is in danger it will be me. I say that I go w along with the plan until they have me and then I will kill them. Whenever Scoot and Diz are safe somepony else can come to assist me. Any that feel up to the challenge can teleport to me. I will look down on no pony who stays behind. I am sure that Chaotic has no problem dealing justice to these scum."

They all wanted to help Heart but Twilight brought up a concern. "Kill them? Why do we have to kill them?"

Heart actually didn't think that would be a problem. "Yeah kill them. They deserve to die. They can die then and save us some trouble or die after the fact. If we kill them then we don't put as much risk on us. If they are not in a public area as soon as I think Scoot is away I will blow the damn place and every single one of them to ash. No pony that hurts my family gets to live. No pony!" Heart was filled with hate towards the ponies. The room's inhabitance didn't know if it was just because of the circumstances or not. They could see it on his face and in his eyes.

Chaotic had to agree on some extent. "I hate to say it but i agree that they need to die, or minimum locked up. but dead would ensure that none that are involved would want revenge or could get back out and harm them again. if they are willing to take and kill a mare and her foal...there is no hope for them to turn around and just give up the hunt. Beside that. if it were Luna and Moon, you all know I would be saying the same thing. If were Tia and Illusion then Discord would have turned this world upside down by now. it not the best answer to most, but it has to be done to keep them and others safe. I will help you with this plan Heart and make sure that Scootaloo and Dismal are safe with Cebby, then join you in the fight. just don't let yourself be killed before I get there."

"Thank you Chaotic. Who else will assist me. I want to know so that I know how many Beacons I need to tell to come."

Discord spoke first. "I have to go now. What kind of draconaquus would I be if I stood around after Chaotic so brilliantly called me out. I will not kill. I will however disable those who threaten us. I don't like death."

Lightning Hoof volunteered. "I got to go. Scootaloo is one cool gal. I need to kick these ponies' asses. I'll hitch a ride with the jokester. I can fly back afterwards. You got me covered Discord?"

Discord had no problem with that. "It won't be too much trouble to bring you along."

It seemed like Celestia and Luna were going to say something but Heart stopped them. "Nope, not happening. If this situation happened to either of you I wouldn't let Scoot go. Even if she was as powerful as you both. Neither Moon or Illusion will be orphans, not on my watch, I couldn't live with myself if that happened."

Luna and Celesta agreed to stay. They didn't want to stress Heart anymore than he already was. Both Chaotic and Discord were grateful. Heart chose a few Beacons that were willing to go. Heart didn't notice that Petal was gone. She was an earth pony so Heart didn't intend for her to come along.

The ponies all waited for the set time. They had a few hours to burn and not one of them had anything to do in the meantime. Heart took a seat on his throne. Heart had a odd and saddening thought as he felt soft seat. _'This thing is useless if I lose the ones I love.'_

Hours passed, the time to act was minutes away and Heart sat on his throne sick to his stomach waiting. He hated waiting. He hated because he could do nothing. He sat with hate filling his being for those who stole his loved ones. He was leagues calmer than before but his rage and hate was only condemned to a deeper, further part of his mind. He was not sure if when the time came that he would be able to contain his fury.

He was surprised when the throne room doors burst open revealing five ponies of various types assisting another pony. Heart saw the five other ponies but his attention was focused on the orange pegasus with a foal curled in her wing.

Every pony and the one draconaquus was surprised by the site.

Heart jumped out of his seat and teleported the measly distance to embrace his family. All of his hate and anger disappeared as he held them close. Scootaloo was crying, while Dismal was quietly sleeping. "Heart…"

Heart shushed his wife. "It's fine now. Your safe." Heart was so happy, he joined Scootaloo with the tears. "I love you. I just love you."

Scootaloo and Heart just kept repeating the same lines over and over. "I love you. I love you. I love you." They did this for a solid minute before Heart backed off and they both calmed down. A Beacon escorted Scootaloo to see a doctor to ensure she was fine.

Heart was so focused that he had completely ignored the ponies that brought Scootaloo and Dismal back to him.

The five ponies stood waiting for Heart to acknowledge them. They each wore armor that Heart had never seen before. It was full armor that was mostly white with a green pattern. The pattern was Heart's pattern. The armor was to look like Heart's coat. The armor cover almost every inch of their body. They still had flexibility due to the way the plates were designed. The only place the armor didn't cover was the face.

Heart addressed the pony in front. He was a black unicorn. The first thing Heart noticed was the massive gash across his cheek that dripped blood. "Who are you? What is your name?"

The pony smiled like nothing had happened. "I am number six. I am a Defibrillator."

Heart was confused. "A what?"

"We are you sword and shield. Our lives are your's to command."

Heart was trying to piece together the puzzle. He realized that these were the soldiers that Petal had been training. "You're the new soldiers that Petal put funding for. What makes you different than my other guards?" Heart mostly knew but wanted to know how these ponies would answer him.

The held a straight face. "We go through intense, brutal training and will do anything you say. No questions, no hesitation. We are just an extension of your will. Say it and it will be done or we will die trying." The pony's words were decisive and almost cold.

Heart didn't believe him. "Anything? How about you kill yourself?"

\Everyone in the room was surprised that Heart would say such a thing

The pony knew it was a test. He drew his sword using magic and positioned the blade across his throat. "Give me the command and let your will be done."

Heart was shocked. "No, stop. Put your sword away." The pony sheathed the sword and nodded. Heart looked at the other ponies in the group. One was bleeding from is right hind leg and it had started to form a pool at his hoof. The pony just stood there emotionless. Heart couldn't believe that he just stood there. "Are you injured?"

The pony nodded.

"Why aren't you seeking medical attention?"

The pony answered in a neutral tone. "Waiting for your orders sir."

Heart's first thought was that the pony was stupid. "Go get that fixed! Why would you just stand there bleeding? I would think you would be moaning in pain by now." The injured pony walked off following his leader's orders.

The lead pony spoke. "We only feel pain for our king and his kingdom."

Heart couldn't believe this. "Ok what the hell are you guys about? You called yourself number six. What is your real name and What does it mean to be a Defibrillator?"

The pony had given his name. "My name is Six. All of us are numbers because we are nothing. We are no longer the ponies we were before. We are tools for you to use. I am Six. My squad consists of Three, Five, Eight, Eleven, and Fourteen. Being a Defibrillator means that you are here only for you, Heart's Vision. I didn't make the name, not too found of it really. It is a little mouthful and I think it is too strong on trying to be a pun off your name. Not my choice though."

Heart noticed the including Six there was six ponies in the group. But he only saw five come in. "There is six members of your squad right? Where is the sixth?"

Six was cold with his words. "Either dead or resting. She was tasked with burning the place to the ground as we left. We will know later."

Heart was disturbed by the whole situation. "Burned where to the ground?"

"The address that was on the second note, it led to a warehouse. We infiltrated it and found many ponies that wanted you dead. We rescued Scootaloo and Dismal. Killing as many as we could in the process. Five was suppose to trap the rest inside and burn the building. If when we get back, she isn't there we will proceed to track and eliminate the remaining terrorists."

Heart overwhelmed by all of this. "How many were there? How many did you kill?"

The pony smiled, proud of his deed. "We killed nine of them. There were more but we were to rescue Scootaloo and Dismal. Everything else was not a priority. I do not know how many Five killed. She may have rid us of all of them. Either way I know she killed some off, no matter if she died or not."

Chaotic shook his head. "This is just the thing I told you about that only leads to death, war, and worse."

Six turned his gaze toward Chaotic. "Saving the queen and her child leads to war? They started it. We will end it. Any threat to Heart must be promptly eliminated. By any means. We killed because that was the most efficient and guaranteed way for us to eliminate the threat for future attacks. If Heart is not satisfied with this than we will suffer and punishment he sees fit. But you are not Heart. You are a former king who failed in many ways."

Heart didn't want to hear that sort of thing about his friend. "Do not talk about Chaotic that way."

Six stiffened up and faced forward. "Yes sir." There was no hate or spite in his tone. It was quick and simple.

Heart had expected some sort of retaliation but received none.

Petal walked in with a smile. "I see your first mission went well. I passed Scootaloo on the way here. May I get a briefing?"

Six looked to Heart.

Heart didn't catch on at first. "Yeah."

Six explained the results to Petal.

Petal wished they new the fate of the other member. Petal had a bone to pick with Chaotic. She addressed him with a smug look. "So what do you think of my little program now?"

Chaotic shook his head. "No matter what i say you wont agree and it wont make a difference until it gets out of control. then more than this kingdom has seen before will die. and these machines are only good for murder."

Petal sighed. "You are stubborn aren't you? For fucks sake I just proved that they are useful. They saved Scootaloo and Dismal! Neither of them were even harmed. Heart's life was not put at risk and the kidnappers are dead or will be dead soon. Why can't you just accept this? They have done nothing wrong. I understand that your world was fucked but you don't have to think that our's will end up the same. Why won't you just have a shadow of a doubt?"

Chaotic tried to keep calm. "because as your simple little mind said. my old world was fucked. and i see you creating the same problems that made it that way. If you don't learn from history you repeat it. im trying to keep this world from the same fate as the crappy one i came from! and those beings didn't have magic to make it worse. and millions still died wrong deaths."

"This isn't your world! Stop acting like it will be the same. I'm tired of you saying everything I do is wrong. I think it is personal and not logical. You always pin point me as the ass in the room. How about you stop and think instead of yapping your mouth away?"

Chaotic was about to say something but Heart was tired of it. "Shut up both of you. Good job Petal for saving my family. Thank you Chaotic for trying to prevent the same atrocities that happened in your world. Now I think that these Defibrillators should be continued. I give Petal permission to make more but I don't want a whole lot. These ponies are for special missions and that is it. If there is too many than something is bound to go wrong. I am done with today so I am going to spend time with my family. Goodbye." Heart walked away. He waved away the soldiers as he left.

Petal was left behind staring at Chaotic with disdain.

**A/N: not that long but I hoped you enjoyed. Please review~ sci-fi**


	33. Deal with the devil

**A/N: I already posted two chapters on one day right, why shouldn't I do it again? I hope you enjoy these following chapters. ~sci-fi**

Chapter 32: Deal with the devil.

Heart's Vision sat in a vacant room by himself. He conveyed his thoughts to the windigos. _'I am ready for your end of the bargain. I made sure that every single one of the kidnapping ponies were dead. The Defibrillators made sure of that.'_

Heart had delved into his own mind and could see the projection of the windigos. Heart never did know why they decided upon a mist pony instead of just a normal one. _'We already knew but good job. We see that you have secured some privacy for this little exchange.'_

'_You told me to, and I don't want any pony seeing what happens just incase you are a liar.'_

'_Oh we do not lie on this subject. This is a benefit to you and us. What we offer is a great deal of power. It may not be as much power as all of the alicorns combined but it will grow if you feed it.' _

'_Stop being coy. Get to the damn point.' _

'_Fine, we would have liked to talk for a bit but it seems you are in a rush. We are willing to merge our power with your's. You will instantly gain a large amount of magical power and the best part is that you will gain our ability to grow with hate. That is up to you. Either way you will be more powerful.'_

Heart didn't like it. It seemed suspicious. _'Yeah but power always has a cost. What aren't you telling me?' _

'_The downside is that you will be able to feel like we feel. You read on changelings, it will be like that but more intense. You will feel emotions in a wide radius, not just the ones directed towards you. The ones directed towards you will feel stronger however. We actually didn't know about that last part until we became entrapped inside you. Most ponies don't realize we are around and can't direct their hate towards us.' _

'_How does this benefit you?'_

The windigos were wondering if Heart would ask. _'We feed off of emotions. If we bond our power with yours we will be able to feel them stronger and that means that we can become stronger. That is why you will be stronger as well, we are a part of you Heart. Our strength is your strength.'_

'_Ok. How do we do this?'_

'_It is so simple. We will press our being on you and you just have to let us in. it will be intense for you. It will hurt. You should be able to cope. You have dealt with power influxes. Do you want to begin?' _

Heart saw no reason why not. _'Might as well.'_ It didn't take the windigos long to start the process. Heart had stolen powers and felt the power but this was different. It didn't feel the same. The power was coming from within and staying there but became more intense. It felt like he had filled his stomach and kept eating. It sickened him. But he heard the windigos telling him to accept it. They said that the process would go by faster the more he let in. He listened wanting it to be over. After the feeling of being overwhelmed came a intense pain through out his body.

It took about thirty minutes for the entire process to be over. Heart was worn out from it and laid down. He felt different but he couldn't really wrap his head around it at the moment. He accidentally fell asleep on the floor of the empty room. He woke up hours later. He felt much better after the nap.

He walked through the halls of the castle feeling much different. He couldn't figure out what it was but it felt like small waves hitting him gently. The windigos enlightened him. _'That feeling is the emotions of ponies. There is many ponies feeling different things so you will feel a broad spectrum of emotions always.'_

To Heart the emotions varied greatly. Some brought him strength, some brought him pain. He assumed that the painful ones were the negative emotions and the pleasant ones were the positive emotions. Heart was getting grips on these feelings. He didn't want to be around Scootaloo or Dismal because he wasn't sure how the new power would effect him and wouldn't risk his families safety.

He didn't want to risk any innocent ponies either so he went to the local Lantern headquarters. It was a nice in between for Heart. He also wanted to see them. It had been a long time since he had personally visited the Lanterns. He had let his Beacons take care of them.

The Lanterns instantly recognized him and gave him no resistance. He chose a random class and walked in. The teacher noticed him and was going to say something but Heart zipped his lips informing the teacher to keep her mouth shut.

The students had not noticed him come in and paid complete attention to the teacher. Heart had come to a younger class. The teacher was explaining some basic physics. Pulleys, lever, that sort of thing. This normally would be something they learned in regular school but she was also telling them how they could use them in real world circumstances, and examples of how they are used.

Heart watched the students. Most of them were paying complete attention to the teacher. Some were talking to each other. All of them seemed to enjoy there time no matter the case. Heart enjoyed seeing the colts and fillies learn. He saw the good in the Lanterns. It saddened him to know that they had so much potential for evil as well. Sun Petal was a perfect example. She had so much willingness to help but is simple blinded by her love for Heart. Heart was the same. He would do anything for Scootaloo without a second thought to it. The windigos spoke to Heart. _'I know you would. We not only can tell because we feel what you feel, we have seen you do it.'_

Heart didn't know what they were talking about. _'What do you mean? Scootaloo has never told me to kill a pony.' _

'_She didn't have to. You have killed ponies in her "Defense". You remember those three little rebels that were planning to capture Scootaloo? Sure you do. You tortured them, killed two. You only let the other one go because she was just a follower. You did some horrible things to that mare. It was an act of rage but it was needed.'_

'_That was not needed. That was a senseless act of violence that I never should have done.' _

'_On the contrary. You stopped them from harming Scootaloo AND you even pared ones life. You should have made sure that you stopped all of them so that you never receive that unpleasant surprise in the mail but you did do good. Ponies need to fear you. That way they respect you. That is how you will create your vision Heart. Your glorious Equestria void of evil.' _

Heart didn't believe them. _'Oh yeah, you totally want to help me. You are trapped inside of me. You want me dead so you will be free.' _

'_Why do you insult us? We are not the monsters that you depict us as. We feel pity for ponies. Especially you. You have had such a tough time with life and things just keep on getting worse. You finally get somewhere and ponies just want to hold you back. Lying to your face about wanting to help because they want their power back.'_

'_What are you talking about?' _

'_The old rulers of course. They just want the power back. They don't care about you. They were afraid of you.' _

'_They care about me. Everything they have done was to help me.' _

'_You disappoint us Heart. You can't see what is happening right in front of your muzzle. They are not helping you. They are taking your power away.' _

'_I already gave them my power. They have no reason to hesitate if they are trying to gain control back.' _

'_They still fear your abilities. They know you can take their powers back and your Lanterns are a threat to them as well. What do you think will happen to you when they return to the crown? They are going to dispose of you. I will be surprised if they don't sentence you to death. They are just waiting until you can't stop them. What will Scootaloo and Dismal do after that, that is if they are not punished as well just for associating with you.' _

'_They would never do that to me! I won't betray them again just because you say they are wrong.'_

The windigos needed to put doubt into Heart's mind. _'You do what you want but think about this. If I am wrong and you take control than everypony lives. If you are wrong and don't take action you, Scootaloo, Dismal, and every Lantern will lose everything. Think about how many lives you are ruining.'_

Heart had grown tired of it and shut them out. The class was finishing the lesson and the teacher brought the students' attention to Heart. "This is our great leader and founder Heart's Vision."

Heart was so caught up in his conversation with the windigos that he had zoned out. "Hey everypony. How are you all today?"

The class was excited to see Heart. Within the Lanterns Heart was a celebrity. Heart spent some time talking with the kids. Asking how they liked being a Lantern and what things they would like to see in the future. The attention felt odd to Heart, not mentally but physically. He could feel them, like heat from the sun. Heart was not comfortable with it and wanted to leave. He didn't want to be rude he rushed his conversations and once free teleported away.

He chose to teleport to the castle halls. As Heart regain sight after his own magical light he was face to face with Lightning hoof who jumped back into the air from Heart's sudden appearance. "Ah shit Heart! Don't do that. Almost made me piss myself."

"Sorry Lightning. I didn't expect anypony to be near here."

"It is alright but don't be doing that too often. I might hit you out of instinct next time." Lightning looked down at Heart's hooves. "What the heck is up with the ice?"

Heart had not noticed but ice had formed on the floor around him. "What the hell?" Heart stepped back away from it. More stared to form around him. He kept backing up, leaving a trail of ice behind him.

Lightning looked to the ice and then back to Heart. "You having some trouble there boss?"

Heart laughed out of embracement. "It seems so. You go ahead and go about your business. I need to fix this."

"Whatever you say." Lightning fly above Heart to avoid the ice.

Heart started to freak. He didn't understand what was going on. The more he lost control of his emotions the more rapidly the ice formed. "What is going on? I am not performing any spells!"

The windigos' voices echoed through his mind. _'This is part of your new powers. They are starting to take hold. Calm down and sit still. The ice will not hurt you.'_

"What kind of shit is this? Why didn't you warn me earlier that this would happen?"

'_We didn't know it would. It isn't like we have a ton of experience with sharing our power with a pony. You just need to calm down. You can blame us later.'_

Heart was slightly mad at the spirits but he listened to them. He sat down. Closed his eyes and calmed himself. It took a little bit and with his eyes closed he couldn't see the progress of the ice.

'_We think you are good now.'_

Heart opened his eyes and saw the entire hall was coated with ice. "Oh shit. That is a lot of ice."

The windigos didn't have a problem with it_. 'We're sure it will be fine. Somepony else will take care of it. No pony needs to know that you did this.'_

"Yeah. I'll go see what Discord is up to. I haven't had a chat with him in a while." Heart left the hall of ice and went in search of Discord. It didn't take too long to find him. He was in the castle Maze. Heart would have more than likely never found him but he was floating thirty feet in the air. He was sitting at a table. It had three empty chairs lined up with it as well as Discords seat. Heart teleported and levitated himself to Discords position. "What's up?"

Discord was not surprised by Heart. "Nothing much. Enjoying the afternoon. Want to sit?"

Heart could use his magic for a long time. Levitating was so simple and he had done it for so long it wasn't a problem but he thought it was best to refrain from using magic. He didn't want to ice something else. "Yeah." Heart sat in the floating chair. It was odd. It made Heart uneasy.

Discord bit into a chocolate donut he was holding with his talon. "Want some?" Discord held out the one he had already bit into.

Heart wasn't interested. "I'll pass. What brings you to this part of… the sky?"

"As I said before, I am just relaxing. Tia is out with Illusion. They are buying cloths or something. You know for not wearing clothes most of the time you ponies have a lot of clothe stores."

"Why would she take him shopping? Can't you just create clothes or something?"

Discord agreed with Heart. "That is what I told her but she wanted to spend time with him, just her. I don't know. I wouldn't want to go anyway so I guess it is for the best." Discord had a concern that he never brought up with Heart. "Did you have anything to do with that whole threatening Illusion and Moon did you?"

Heart didn't know what Discord was talking about. "What? When did anypony threaten Moon or illusion."

"A while back Petal showed up in Ponyville and went to the school. She told the kids to say something like hello and that no pony was safe or something. You didn't hear about that?"

Heart was shocked. "No. No I didn't hear anything about that! Why didn't you or the others sat anything about it? When exactly was this?"

Discord ate the rest of his donut. "It was before Dismal was born. It was a long time ago. I didn't say anything about it because I wasn't sure if you did it or not. I didn't want to upset you. You had a lot of things on your mind already. But now you know. Glad to hear it wasn't you. It didn't seem like something you would do."

"I would never do such a thing as to threaten the kids. That is fucked up. Petal did this? "

"As Big Mac would say. Eyup. I know it was her all along. I just didn't know if you were involved or not."

Heart felt his body temperature rise with his anger. "I'm sorry Discord but I need to go teach her a lesson. I'll talk to you later."

Discord stopped Heart. "Wait. You do whatever you want with her, I don't care about her but I wanted to tell you. Earlier I felt a big change in magic. I don't know what it was exactly but I know it came from within the castle. It was strange. I have never felt that kind of magic being transferred before. It was dark magic. It reminded me of Sombra. Not exactly the same but not far off. Be careful, who knows what it was."

Heart squirmed a little in his chair. "It was probably nothing." Heart tried to cover his tracks.

Discord knew wht he felt. "It was definitely something. I am not wrong on this."

Heart ran over his own words. "I wasn't saying- I mean I am sure that you are- I give up. See you later Discord."

Heart teleported away.

Discord didn't like the way Heart acted. "I think I need to talk to Chaotic."


	34. Fed up

**A/N: So yes you have gotten two chapters today but you must wait for the final one. I will post it tomorrow. I you enjoy this chapter. Have a pleasant day ~ sci-fi**

Chapter 33:Fed up.

Chaotic was walking from his room through one of the halls and was stopped in his tracks. the next hall was frozen and filled with ice. "What on earth? either this is some kind of prank, or something has gone wrong. I hope its the first one." Chaotic was about to use a scanning spell when a flash and friendly face appeared. Discord looked around and gave a frown. "This must have been part of the energy transfer I felt earlier. This isn't good." Chaotic asked what was going on and was filled in on what Discord felt and how Heart was acting. Chaotic's heart started to sink at the ideas that were forming in his head.

"Tell me if I'm wrong but this is the same kind of ice that forms when Windigos are empowered?" Discord looked around and gave a slow nod. "Do I want to know what that means?" Chaotic shook his head. "I don't think I want to know what it means. but we better get rid of this stuff and then find out." then Chaotic used the heat spell to melt the ice and get rid of the water that formed as well. just in case it would have any effects on any that touched it. "Now lets go speak with Heart about this. I can feel his magic presence here so this has to do with him. and that just makes me worry more."

Discord nodded and told Chaotic about him going to see Petal about threatening the kids. Chaotic face hoofed and teleported to the throne room with Discord by his side to see what was going on.

Minutes before Chaotic Love discovered the ice.

Heart's Vision was puffed up in front of Sun Petal. "What kind of shit is that Petal? Threatening a little colt and filly?"

Petal was afraid. She coward before Heart. "I wasn't going to hurt them. I just wanted to scare Chaotic."

"Why would you want to do that? He was in control. There was no need to do anything to him. I could have taken care of anything he did. What you did was stupid and careless."

Petal was moments away from curling up in a ball. "But he is just such a pain. I wanted him to stop interfering with our lives."

"Our lives? He was here to help. All he did was point out the things he thought were wrong. He was right a good bit of the time. He wasn't always right but he was here to help. You and him are alike. You both hold your opinions and stick up for them. And just like him, you are right most the time but mess up. The difference is that he doesn't threaten his enemies' fucking family! If I was in his position than I would have killed you a long time ago."

Petal began to cry. "I just wanted to help. I wanted to help you."

The earth pony's ignorance annoyed Heart. He couldn't take her stupidity anymore. "Oh shut up!" Heart shot magic from his horn. It sprayed Petal with ice, covering her body and freezing her in place.

Plecia had been watching the entire time. "Why would you do that!?"

Heart turned his anger towards her. "Shut up unless you want the same fate!" Plecia did as he said. Heart sat on his throne. With a angered frown on his face.

Chaotic and Discord appeared in front of Heart. They both noticed the Petal ice sculpture next to Heart. It would have made Discord laugh a little if it wasn't for the fact the he could tell Petal was cowering when it happened.

Chaotic gave a sigh. "I see now you know why I don't trust or like her, and why our kid were now under Cebby's constant protection. and all the comments about my family being protected. but now I see what the magic disturbance was and where the other ice came from. are the windigos still under your control? or did something bad happen that they can release their powers through you?"

Chaotic's words seemed to do nothing but anger Heart more. "Nothing bad happened. I did that because she deserved it! I am sick of ponies going behind my back and doing things they know I wouldn't like. I am sick of ponies lying to my face! Why can't they just OBEY!"

Discord didn't like what he was seeing. "Calm down Heart. There is no reason to yell."

Heart was having a hard time containing his rage. "No! I will do whatever the fuck I please!"

Discord was concerned for his friend. "What has gotten into you?"

Heart wanted to hurt the draconaquus. Ice started forming on his throne around him. "What has gotten into me?" Heart laughed. "That's a good one coming from a abomination like yourself. You look like eight different animals all had an orgy and popped out the ugliest thing imaginable. I am surprised that Celestia can stand to be with you. Any other pony would puke at the thought. I guess she has some pretty low standards, either that or she just is really kinky." Heart saw another target. "And you Chaotic. You are just as bad as Celestia. You aren't even close to a pony. The fact that you are attracted to Luna sickens me! It's great that we were ruled by the four most fucked up beings on our continent."

Chaotic shook his head and spoke in a somber voice. "This coming from the one that merged his soul with windigos and is being controlled by them. You let them convince you to let them be part of you and control your mind more than they had the chance to before. and here i actually thought you would have been better then the rest of us. we may be fucked up, but none of us ever gave into our evil willingly. Luna was forced by dark magic, Discord by being cast aside and hated, and I killed my evil side before he could kill more than one pony. you hated these things so much, and now you give into them and let them hurt a friend, threaten an innocent, and I would hate to see you near Scootaloo or Dismal in this state of mind. and then you just give them part of yourself and let them do what they want to your body and soul. its now mostly covered in a black sheet. one that the real heart would hate to see. so ya were are fucked up. but at least we didn't choose to give in and be that way."

Heart did not see what the alicorn saw. Heart thought that he had just been given power but the windigos had lied. They had given Heart power but at a cost. They had merge with his soul. They had only partial control and were making him feel this way, but he did not know this. "I did no such thing. I bargained for power. I would never give them my soul. You are wrong about everything, everything. All of you see us normal ponies as toys to play with. You don't care about what we feel or how we are doing. All you want to do is see us dance, bleed, and cry. The windigos have given me the power to say no. They opened my eyes to what you are really doing. Securing your throne once again. I say NO! No more alicorn! No more fucking abominations! Ponies will rule ponies, normal ponies. Every other race will bow or die! I won't let you abuse us like before. You will serve like very other pony or die. Make your choice."

Discord knew that none of this was Heart. The windigos had gained such a strong hold on him that he probably didn't even realize what he was saying. "The windigos run off of hate Chaotic. Don't fight him. If you still want to help him than go see Luna. Don't think about him, just go show your love. I will take care of this."

Chaotic shook his head slowly. "I'm not fighting him. if anything it is pity or sadness at losing a friend and ally. but if you want to handle this then i trust you can handle it.' then Chaotic turned and walked slowly out of the door followed by Plecia pushing a frozen Petal with her magic.

Discord teleported Scootaloo to his side and Dismal into his arms. "Look at your loved ones Heart. Remember the happiness you have experienced with them."

Heart refused. "No. You will not get out of this Discord!"

Scootaloo looked at Heart confused. She saw Petal frozen next to the throne. "What is going on Heart!?"

"Stay out of this Scoot." Heart made contact with Scootaloo's eyes. He saw her and remembered the happier times. He felt a bolt of pain come over his body. "What the fuck!"

Discord didn't like it but knew it was for the better. "hurts? I would imagine. You really think the windigos really want to help you? They feed off of hate Heart. You know this. They want nothing but pain and misery. Do you know why it hurt to look at Scootaloo? It is because she loves you. These thing's weakness is love. Think of the hearth's warming eve tale. It took the magic of friendship to get rid of these demons."

Heart gritted his teeth. "Your wrong. They are just like the changelings. They feed off emotions, they told me so."

Discord looked to Scootaloo. "Go love him. Hug him and don't let go."

Scootaloo was afraid but she decided to trust Discord. As she approached she heard a snap from Discord. Heart fell to the floor afterwards screaming in pain. Heart yelled at Discord. "What the hell are you doing Discord! It hurts!"

Discord couldn't break the bond but he could weaken it. "I temporarily snapped the windigos away from your soul. Feels like when they gave you their so called power right? They lied Heart. Like they always have. It saddens me that you actually believed them."

Heart was in too much pain to say anything. Scootaloo was careful approaching him. She wrapped her fore hooves around Heart as he squirmed on the ground. "I love you Heart. Please stop. I don't know what is going on but I love you. Don't let those things win. I need my Heart and so does Dismal."

Heart could feel the windigos trying to latch themselves back onto him. He felt Scootaloo's emotions and it hurt him. His body started to convulse. His eyes went blank. A voice that was not his own bellowed from him. "Stop you dumb dragon want to be! This is none of your business! He is ours to control!"

Discord wouldn't feed them. He was dull with his response. "No." Another snap from his claw and Heart shook ferociously. Scootaloo was having trouble holding onto him.

She was scared and her eyes started to well up. She looked to Discord for answers. "What is going on!?"

Discord held his calm tone. "I am giving him a second chance. He is trying to reject them and they are trying to stay. If they win than Heart is lost."

Scootaloo's voice was distraught. "What do you mean!?"

"if he does not win I will kill him. If you love him than show it. You are the only on that can help him. The rest is up to him.'

Scootaloo didn't understand how Discord could be so cold. She didn't care. She loved Heart and she would never let him go. "Heart don't let them win! I love you! You hear me!? I love you! Don't leave me now. Please. I need you. Our son needs you. Don't let them control you. You are stronger than any pony I know." Scootaloo's words made Heart scream in agony. It may have been painful but it was better than the alternative. Scootaloo kept at it. She tried hugging and kissing him. It was hard with his uncontrollable movements. She did everything she could think of. She talked about all their happy memoried together. Every time she did something he became worse. He had stopped screaming and convulsing but he now laid on the ground with his eyes closed crying. He eventually passed out. Scootaloo looked down at her husband with worry and confusion.

She looked at Discord who was running his talon across Dismal's face. Discord thought the colt was so interesting. Discord had looked up Heart's family history and he was the first to have such a unique coat pattern. Discord wanted to know how Heart passed this down to his son when Discord was fairly certain that Heart received it from the windigos.

Scootaloo wanted her child back. "Discord, can I see my son?"

"Of course." Discord gave the child to Scootaloo. Dismal was sleeping due to Discord performing magic so that he heard none of the chaos that was happening around him.

Scootaloo looked worried. She was concerned for Heart but could do nothing for him.

Discord wanted to comfort here but he also had to make sure that she was safe. "I want you to leave. Heart is most likely fine but I want you far away from here."

Scootaloo didn't want to leave. "If you think he is fine than why do I have to leave?"

Discord didn't want to answer. "Please?"

"No. Tell me why."

Discord just let it out. "If he isn't than I don't want you to see us kill him."

The words made Scootaloo's heart sink to her stomach. "You aren't serious are you?"

Discord nodded slowly. "I'm afraid so. Zecora still hasn't found the artifact. We won't be able to contain him indefinitely. We will have no choice. Please leave. I don't want you to see it happen if it does."

Scootaloo understood and left with Dismal, the thoughts of an unhappy future coming with her. Discord wasn't sure what Chaotic was doing right now and sent him a note telling him to come. It only took a few second for Chaotic to pop up next to Discord. "What's going on?"

Discord explained what had happened and what might or might not happen next. "My question is are you ready to do what is needed if it comes down to it?"

Chaotic hated the option but nodded and answered firmly. "Yes. we can not let him live if he is going to let that evil run free. windigos are bad enough alone and on their own. but like this they are a threat to us all and our families. even his. and we both know that the real heart would want us to keep his family safe at any cost...even his life. and if i can i will save the part of his soul that is still him, long enough so that they can say good by... now let get ready to see if we lost the war, or won a battle."

Heart blinked his eyes open. He was not fully aware and his vision was blurry. He swayed back and fourth as he stood up .He looked at Discord and Chaotic trying to figure out where he was and who they were. It took a few seconds but he regained his senses. "Holy shit I'm sore!"

Discord was not sure it was him yet. "Heart?"

Heart acted causal. "Yeah…? What happened? When did I get here?" Heart had no memory of what he did past talking to Discord.

Discord let out a sigh of relief. "Glad to have you back my friend."

"Have me back?"

Discord gave Heart the run down on the situation.

Heart wanted to hit himself for his stupidity. "Why did I believe them! Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! I'm done. I want them out and I want them out NOW!"

Discord was going to tell Heart to be patient and wait but he was interrupted by the throne room doors opening and a certain zebra with saddlebags on coming in. "I have a cure for your ill. No more tears you need to spill."

**A/N: Zecora to the rescue! Another not so long chapter but the next one it plenty long. I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and I hope you enjoy the next one as well. ~ sci-fi**


	35. Righting wrongs with a little Heart

**A/N: From start to finish. This took way too long. I like it, don't get me wrong. It was just so different than what I had grown use to. I use to write whenever I felt like it and posted the chapter as soon as I got done. The whole post a chapter a week thing bugged me. Well that is no mare so YAY! Here is the final chapter. I hope you enjoy. No where near as dramatic as HT's ending but I like it. ~sci-fi **

Chapter 34: Righting wrongs with a little Heart.

Heart's Vision had just finished his episode with the windigos. Zecora had shown up in the throne room. She had brought her supplies and was briefing Heart on the ritual. All of the elements of harmony. Zecora explained that they could enhance the process. Heart was sore, tired, and wasn't truly ready to perform the ritual. He could not risk waiting any longer. The windigos had seeped into his mind and influenced him too many times.

Heart looked at the elements of harmony. Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Twilight stood waiting. All except Twilight didn't seem pleased with being here. Rainbow Dash gave Heart a death glare. Heart felt horrible about everything he did. "I am sorry. I apologize for everything. I always tried to model my vision of the perfect future from the elements of harmony." Heart chuckled from the sheer irony. "How I failed so gloriously."

Heart looked at Rainbow Dash. "I dishonored my friendship with you. I brutally betrayed my friends. I apologize for the failure. I let you down Rainbow. You trusted me and I failed you."

Heart looked at Rarity. "I did the same for you. I was greedy and self centered."

Heart looked to Applejack. "And again with you. I lied to everypony as well as myself."

He looked at Pinkie Pie. "I made ponies cry. I caused morning and depression. All you do is make ponies laugh and smile."

Heart looked to Fluttershy. "The cruelty I showed was a spit in the face of your kindness."

Heart looked to the one he most dreaded, Twilight. "I used magic yes but not your kind of magic. I used it to control ponies. I used for me, not for the ones I care about. "

Heart addressed them as a group. " In this time I failed in so many ways. I failed as a leader when I led ponies to a false dream. I failed as the hero I depicted myself as when I did nothing but hurt ponies. I failed as a husband when I lied to Scootaloo. I failed myself when I hurt myself with my actions. All of that and the worst thing I did was fail as a friend. I failed as your friends. When you fail at being the elements of harmony and friendship's friend you know that you are in the wrong. I won't ask for forgiveness because I deserve none. I just want you to know that I am truly sorry. I sincerely apologize to each and every one of you. Know that if I live through this I plan on trying my hardest to make up for it. Let's get this over with so I can start paying for my mistakes.'

Zecora told Chaotic Love and Discord that they could stay but were not needed. They both insisted on being here for Heart. Zecora chose the throne room for it's space. She drew a large circle on the floor in black paint. She then drew six smaller circles on the line for the elements to sit in. She then drew a thick line leading from the center of the circle to another small circle outside the circle. She placed a large bright red stone in it. The stone was bound to a silver frame. It looked like the center piece of some odd necklace. It was the right size as well.

All the elements lined up on the spots Zecora told them and faced the center of the circle. Zecora told Heart to stand in the center. After everypony was lines up she gave each of the elements a sheet to read off of. It was the spoken part of the ritual. It was in a different language and made no sense to anypony. Zecora told them as long as they read them then it would work. Zecora was going to read first so that they pronounce them correctly. She said they would know when the ritual would be done when the stone turned red.

To Heart the stone didn't look all that special. The silver from was the only give away that it wasn't just another random rock.

Chaotic offered to get Scootaloo before they started but Heart said no. He didn't want Scootaloo around incase something went wrong or he failed.

Heart told them he was ready and they started. Zecora poke the lines and the elements followed. It was odd hearing them all speak in a different language. Nothing seem to happen at first. A few sentences in the floor in the circle began to glow. The eerie blue light flowed towards to stone. When it made contact Heart felt the pain hit him.

"AHHH!" Heart fell to down on his knees. He felt like he was being ripped apart. He could physically feel the windigos trying to be sucked out of him. It felt like somepony was sucking on his chest with a huge straw but couldn't get anything out.

Zecora saw something was wrong. She feared this. Heart was born with the windigos and his body didn't want to give them up. She told Heart that he would have to force them out.

He couldn't respond but understood her. He closed his eyes.

Heart saw an image of his younger self. The young Heart spoke to the older one. "Hello. My name it Heart's Vision. What is your's"

Heart wasn't sure how to react but gave his name. "That is my name as well. I am an older version of you."

The young Heart liked this. "That is cool. What is different when we are older?"

"Well… we do a lot of things. Make some big mistakes. We do a lot of bad."

Little Heart was curious. "What kind of mistakes do we make?"

"We hurt a lot of ponies. We betray our friends."

The little Heart looked at the older even more confused. "That can't be right. I wouldn't ever hurt a pony and I surely wouldn't betray my friends. Are you sure we are the same pony?"

Heart didn't know why but he wasn't confident with his answer. "Well we have the same name and we look the same. We have to be the same."

Little Heart avoided it. "What about momma? What happened to her?"

"She died."

Little Heart was really upset about this. "What!? How?"

"She took too much of her medicine."

"We couldn't save her?"

Heart wasn't around when it happened and didn't honestly care. "We weren't around and why does it matter. It didn't matter when she died. We never needed her."

Little Heart was offended. "How can you say that!? She loves us. It is our mother."

Heart actually thought about it and his youth was right. The fact that he would think and say such a thing was wrong. He looked at his younger self wondering where that colt went.

He received his answer as the memory of Fire Flash's death appeared. Heart didn't see as it before but now realized that was the turning point. When he decided that death was an appropriate punishment for those who hurt him. His memory showed him something extra that was never there before. Instead of Heart being there it showed the mist pony.

Little Heart looked at it with fear. "That mean pony. I don't like him. He always says we and acts real mean to me. He shows me mean visions of the future but they never come true. They are still scary. When he is around I always feel really sad as well. Can you make him go away?"

Heart looked to the mist pony and back to little Heart. He put it together. This wasn't the young version of himself. It was just him. Without the windigos influence. It was him in his purity. Listening now he realized that the windigos had changed him so much. They had turned him slowly over all these years.

The mist pony looked away from the burnt Fire Flash. It stared at Heart. It split into five different forms.

They all looked like they were made of fog or mist as before but only one of them was now a pony. Two were slicans. One was a zebra. One was a griffin.

They all approached . They spoke at the same time. "You put it together now didn't you."

Little Heart cowered behind Heart. Big Heart spoke. "You are the source of my problems. You have ruined my life."

"Do you really believe that? We didn't create you brother or mother. We didn't kill your father. We did give you strength. It is not like we asked to be here. If you want to blame anyone than blame that lizard. He did this to you. We are just along for the ride. We will admit that we hate it here. Being confined to a single place, horrible. Did you know that before we became trapped in you we were having the feast of our lives? Those lizards can make some hate. How much fun it was watching them kill each other over food. Killing their children with the cold. You ponies' love is too strong for us to stay here."

The pony windigo stepped forwarded. "I was actually one of the windigos who caused the blizzards in Equestria so long ago. You killed my two pals with your little friendship bullshit. I barely survived. Well I ran into this group over that slican country. Whatever they are calling it these days. Two of them were actually slicans before being windigos. Those things are great. I thought that your little racial tiff was fun. I was so wrong! As soon as we left this cage we were going to head back to those slicans."

Heart didn't really understand. "What do you mean they were slicans before?"

The pony windigo forgot the ponies didn't know. "I'm sorry. We are made from different species. I was a pony. Not sure exactly what happens but we do know that if a being has enough hate that they become a windigo. It's a process that is unknown to us we just have seen enough come out of hateful being the we know how we got here."

Heart didn't want ot talk to these things anymore. "I don't care about where you came from. I just want you to leave. I am done with you. You don't belong here."

"Oh so true Heart but we want to extend and offer to you. We don't normal care but you were fun. Even being trapped in you brought some entertainment and we all have been around so very long. We want a new member of our little group. It gets boring after a while."

Heart couldn't believe their nerve. "Why the hell do you think I would go with you!?"

"Most beings jump at the chance at immortality. Living forever and not having to worry about a pesky body. Come on Heart we get board. We need a new member to spice things up. I wish we could invite Discord. That guy is a hoot! You will probably get old after a couple hundred years but Discord could probably entertain us for a millennia."

Heart would never go with them. "Fuck off. Leave my body. I don't want your offer. I don't want your power. I don't want anything to do with you."

The windigo was disappointed. "Really? You want them?" The windigo pointed behind Heart.

He saw still images of his friends. Looking at them, there was quite a lot and these were just his close friends.

Chaotic Love, Discord, Nick, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Celestia, Luna, Fluttershy, Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Rarity, Spike, Big Mac,Sun Petal, Lightning Hoof, Lead Road, and Dismal. All these ponies were his friends and family. So many that were close to him. All of them he hurt.

The windigo spoke with anger. "You really think that they will want you back? You betrayed almost all of them. Dismal is the only one that you haven't hurt and you just haven't had enough time. If you come with us than you can't hurt them anymore. You can let them live their lives and live your own. You can leave them in peace."

Heart thought he knew the correct answer but he wanted some confirmation. He looked down to little Heart. "What do you think? Should I leave or stay?"

Little Heart looked at them all. "I don't know what we did but if we really hurt them like you say we did than don't we have to make up for it? We have to make it right. Leaving won't fix anything. It will just give us an easy way out. It is like when I found out about Scoots parents. I could have walked away and saved myself the trouble but that wouldn't have been right. She needed me. I had to stay. I had to put everything right. Even if I didn't want to. What we want isn't what defines us. It's what we do. If you walk away now than you are a coward. Are you a coward? Are you willing to leave all these ponies hanging?" Little Heart waited for the reply.

Heart smiled. "That is what I thought you would say. I'm glad to be sure." Heart looked at the windigos. "You heard him. I need to make things right. You leave, I don't need your interference anymore."

The windigos nodded. "Very well. It was interesting Heart."

The windigos faded away along with little Heart.

The real Heart opened his eyes rapidly. He took a deep breathe. He felt as the windigoes left his being. He was staring right at the stone. He saw an energy leave him and inhabit the stone. The stone turned purple and the ritual stopped. Heart stood up. He was relieved to have that over with.

Zecora walked up to Heart. "How does it feel Heart? Knowing that they are no longer a part."

Heart was glad. "I wish I could say I feel great but I feel like I was hit by a train. I am glad to have those things out of me though. Please tell me that we are done. I need some rest. It has been a long day."

Discord smiled knowing his friend was free. "There is more to do but I think it can wait until tomorrow. I think you earned some rest."

"Than I will see you all tomorrow." Heart teleported away to get his rest.

The flash from the magic startled Scootaloo who was putting Dismal to sleep in his crib. Scootaloo probably would have yelled at Heart but the last she heard was that Discord and Chaotic might have to kill him. She jumped on him, happy to know he was going to be fine.

Heart fell down, too weak to hold Scootaloo's weight. He landed with a soft thud. Heart looked over at Dismal who only stirred a little. Heart was quiet doing his best to consider Dismal. "Hey, hey now. It's alright. What has gotten you worked up?"

Scootaloo was amazed that he said that. "What do you mean? Earlier in the throne room of course. That whole freak out you had." Scootaloo let Heart stand up.

Heart wished he could recall what she was talking about. "I'm sorry Scoot. I don't know what you are talking about. I think Discord said that my memory blanked or something. I do have some great news. They are gone. The windigos are finally gone."

Scootaloo was happy at her husband's success. "That's great Heart! How did it go down?"

"Well it was painful for one. It was odd… I don't really know how to describe it. I kind of went into my own mind and saw the windigos and a pure version of myself. I can tell you more later. I am really tired. I have had a very draining day."

Scootaloo wanted to know more but understood. "Okay, we can talk about it later."

Heart slid into the bed wondering if he would dream tonight. "I love you Scoot."

"I love you too Heart."

Heart drifted to sleep.

Heart was in the living room of a house. He didn't recognize it but he liked it. He had this nagging sense that it was his home. He was sitting in a soft comfortable sofa. A little colt ran in through the door excited. The colt looked at Heart and ran towards him jumping on the sofa and hugging him.

"I love you daddy!" The little colt was Dismal.

Heart hugged him back. "I love you too." Heart couldn't explain it but he knew things about this world but he couldn't really place it. He had no memory but he understood. "How was school Diz?"

"It was great daddy. I had fun. Can we play a game?"

Heart loved his kid's enthusiasm. "Sure we can but let's wait for mommy. She might want to join us."

As if on queue Scootaloo came in through the door. "Heart we have a problem. I think Dismal is a machine."

Heart laughed. "What?"

Dismal looked confused.

Scootaloo enlightened them. "There is no pony that fast. I get to the school and he blots for home. There is no way he is that fast." Scootaloo fly up to Dismal and spoke in a playful voice. "We must check him. Hold him while I examine"

Heart complied lifting Dismal with his magic. Dismal tried to escape but couldn't. "I'm a pony. I am just really fast. Believe me."

Scootaloo looked him over. "There is only one way to check if he is a robot. Robots don't giggle." Scootaloo out her lips on Dismal's belly and blew.

The little colt giggled at the feeling. "Stop mommy. That tickles! Hhaha. Stop!"

Scootalooo stopped. "release the prisoner. He is all clear." Heart put Dismal down. Both parents smiling at their own antics.

Everything stopped. It was as if someone had paused. Heart looked around confused. Next to him stood Luna. "Hello Heart."

Heart jumped back a little. "Oh hey Luna. What are you doing?"

"I wanted to see what your first happy dream looked like. It turns out that I guessed correctly."

Heart hadn't put the pieces together and didn't realize that he was dreaming. "That explains a lot. You guessed I would dream about Scootaloo?"

"Oh you. I even made a bet on it."

"A bet? I am assuming with Chaotic."

Luna smirked. "No actually. My bet was with Discord."

Heart was intrigued. "What did he think I would dream about?"

"We both thought that you would dream about Scootaloo. He just predicted it would be a little more… sexual. I thought it would be more homely."

"I guess you won than. What did you win?"

Luna smiled wickedly. "My own amusement. Discord now must prance through the castle wearing a lovely dress. While repeating "Look at my dress. My pretty little dress. Aren't I just the prettiest." in a sing song voice."

Heart wanted to see that. "Well I could see that being embarrassing for Discord but would that be all that bad for you?"

"My punishment would have been a little different. It involve uhh, latex." Heart raised a brow. "Nothing sexual I just had to walk around in it. Forget I said anything."

"Okay, will do."

Luna had seen the dream thus far but wanted to see more. "Do you mind if I stay and watch? I enjoying seeing ponies with happy dreams."

Heart didn't mind. "You can stay. I don't think you being here will effect me."

The dream resumed.

Dismal looked at Heart. "Are you going to ask mommy?"

Heart lost his place for a second but quickly remembered. "Oh yeah. Scoot, he wants to play a game with us."

Scootaloo loved spending time with her son. "What game?"

Heart hadn't decided. "I don't know. How about we go outside and play tag? Sound good Diz?"

Dismal nodded.

Heart got up. "Of course you want to play. From what mommy says you are destined to win."

Heart went outside. He was in Ponyville. The house was in place of his old one. This hose was much nicer. It was two stories with a well maintained lawn as well as garden out front. In the back was kids toys for Dismal to play with.

Heart played tag outside with his family. Dismal was fast but not faster than Scootaloo, who slowed down so that it was fair for Dismal. Heart messed around and teleported. Dismal yelled out saying it was no fair. Heart countered with how if he would learn the teleportation spell that he wouldn't have a problem.

For once in his life Heart was able to enjoy his dreams. He wondered if his future would really look like this.

The following morning Heart sat on the throne. In the room with him was Celestia, Luna, Discord, Chaotic Love, Sun Petal, Plecia Nearctica, Lightning Hoof, and royal guards. Heart had something to put right. Heart cleared his throat. "Hehem, today is a very special day. A day that I have been looking forward to for quite some time. This is my first full day without the windigo presence inside of me and my last day as king."

The guards and Beacons were shocked by his announcement. Petal spoke out of discontent. "No! You can't leave now that you have rid yourself of them!"

Heart didn't care what Petal said. He was doing this or without her support. "Yes I can and am. In my place the old rulers shall take the throne back. They were fit rulers. I should have never done what I did. I make that right today by returning them to power." Heart had never worn a crown so he couldn't give them anything but he did show his submission. He bowed to the old and new rulers. "My leaders." They smiled at seeing Heart do the right thing.

The site made her sick to her stomach. The realization of everything she had done being for nothing. She looked at Chaotic who paid no attention to her. "I will not serve under them. I can't do it. I won't do it." Petal stormed out of the room. Heart was concerned and ran after her. Everypony else followed. After some chasing through the halls Petal finally found what she was looking for.

Petal had stopped her fleeing at a balcony. It had a beautiful view of the land around Canterlot. Sitting on the balcony a pony could see for miles due to it being located on the side of the castle faceing the drop off. When every other pony arrived. Petal was balancing on the railing looking down.

Heart looked at the earth pony confused. "What the hell are you doing Petal!?"

Petal was crying. "I can't do it Heart. It is not right. You deserve to be leader. I can't go back to living in that horrible place again. Being nothing. They won't let you keep the Lanterns and I can't go without my family."

Heart tried to talk sense into her. "Petal it isn't the end of the world. They aren't going to deprive you of your family. Just because I am not leader does not mean that you can't find happiness."

Petal looked at the group one last time. "How can I find my way through the darkness without the light? You were my light Heart. You saved me but now… now there is no light." Petal jumped off the railing.

A wail from Plecia was all that was heard as she slid off. A gust of wind pushed Heart to the side and a blur passed him and went over the railing. Heart stood frozen. He couldn't believe that Petal did that. Plecia was starring out into the background. The next thing Heart saw was Lightning coming up carrying a very angry Petal. She hit him on the chest and shoulder for saving her. He didn't look too happy as he threw her back on the balcony.

Petal yelled at Lightning. "Why did you do that!"

Lightning was pissed at her actions. "Because you are acting stupid! Heart won't abandon us! Do you really think that your family will leave you!? Really? What the fuck is wrong with!? You are willing to leave us all behind? You are willing to leave Plecia behind?"

Petal was going to yell at Lightning again. He was done listening to it. He smacked her one good time knocking her out instantly. He then angrily brushed past Heart and the others.

Plecia was already be Petal's side. She was making sure she was okay. Petal was fine besides no being conscious.

Heart looked at Chaotic. "What are you going to do about her?"

Chaotic gave a sigh before giving him an honest answer. "You aren't going to like what I am going to say but listen before arguing. I honestly would have been able to sleep easy knowing she jumped just because of the threat and evil pony she has been while you ruled. she hit a deep nerve when she killed that colt for something i have always told kids was a good thing. it might not have been so bad if i wouldn't be a father. then she takes it further and threatens my kids and family. I have a true hate for this pony. But... beside loosing all control and power or post in the lanterns she will be allowed to live. under the one condition that Plecia here takes full responsibility for anything she does. you will be allowed to keep your love as long as you can keep her under control and other safe from her. but i will warn you now. if she steps out of line or puts another in danger, she will parish by my hoof. that is the best i can do for her." Then chaotic gave an annoyed sigh. he wasn't happy with himself for giving that horrible pony another chance, but he was taking a page from the true Heart's book. so for now he would give chances that he wouldn't have before.

Plecia didn't like the idea that her lover at risk but she thought it better than the alternative. "I will watch her. I am hoping she will calm down once this is all over. She is a good pony. She is just a little blinded by following Heart. The way I understand it Heart himself was similar in his youth."

Heart both agreed and disagreed with that. "I was a little fanatical but there were some differences. The main one being that I didn't follow a possessed pony. Once she realizes that she can live without my leadership she should be fine." Heart looked to Chaotic. "We need to make this change in power official. Maybe we can prevent anymore unfortunate kidnappings." Chaotic as well as the others agreed.

It was rushed but the ceremony was put in place that day. It was held in the center of Canterlot. Normally these kind of things were held in the castle but Heart insisted on it being done today so they may do.

Many ponies attended the change in power. Most were just in the area and stopped to see what the commotion was about. At the end Heart was proud. He had wanted to do that for months. To put his betrayal right. There was however certain problems that could not be dealt with by a simple change in hooves. The ceremony was over and some ponies had began to depart but a large group of ponies in armor approached. They were Defibrillators. Their unique armor was the give away of who they were.

Heart recognized the voice as Six spoke. "What about us?"

There was over two dozen of them here. Heart guessed that was all of them. Heart had forgotten about them for the most part. "I don't know really. I am no longer king. What does your code tell you to do at this point?"

Six knew the answer but he thought it impossible. "Well we are suppose to return you to power. I don't think you want that. We are trained for combat but our number one rule is to follow you Heart. But with our training we are best served to one who needs a sword and shield. With you no longer king we will have nowhere to go."

Heart didn't know what to tell them. He turned to Chaotic. "What would you have them do? I don't think they fit anywhere else in society now. I won't have any use for them as a normal pony or a prisoner. They are of no use to me. What should we do?"

Chaotic thought about it and had an idea. "for now if you are willing and Heart permits. I will keep you that are already trained as a special task force. you will be more free of mind than you are now, but when the time comes and the hard jobs need to be done, you will be called on. I have a smaller task force like this already, but with your training you could all do some real good around this world. but it is Heart's and your choice." Chaotic did this for a reason that the others didn't know but if his planed worked there would be peace instead of a war or war ponies on the loose.

Heart liked the idea. "Sounds like a plan to me. What do you say Six?"

Six thought that would be fine but felt it was only fair to warn the rulers. "We could do that. That way we wouldn't be wasted. I will warn you kings and queens. If Heart gives us an order than I and my comrades with follow it to a tee. No matter what the order is. Our first rule is to listen to Heart."

No pony liked the sound of that. Heart didn't even like it. The rulers and Heart went back to the castle to talk Heart brought up what to do now. "So I guess that you four need to decide upon my punishment. I don't want to hear it now. We can decide at the trial."

Celestia raised a brow. "What trial?"

Heart had already planned it out. "I want a public trial. No hiding from the ponies that I hurt. I want to let those who wish to speak, speak. You will decide the punishment of course but I want to hear what they have to say and I think you should hear it as well. I want it to be in Canterlot. I want it out in the open where any pony can walk up and say what they want. Please, I want this. Let it be my last act as king. Let me hear the evil I have done."

Celestia didn't like the idea but she would let Heart have this. "I say we do it. Heart deserves that much." The others agreed.

The next day the rulers and Heart went into town. They gathered many ponies for the event. It was surprisingly peaceful. Ponies didn't remark on anything a Heart passed. He had expected much worse. Chaotic created some seats for every pony. He modeled it after a court in his world. The four rulers sat together and all the random ponies were seated to the sides. Heart was seated in the center, being watched by every pony.

Heart fiddled with his new piece of jewelry. It was a necklace. It's only gem being a purple stone framed with silver. It was the artifact that Zecora trapped the windigos in. Heart decided to wear it to remind himself of what he did. He also still had his murderer mark.

The rulers went of the things Heart was being charged with. The things such as treason and murder. They also told everypony about this special case. Telling them that they could speak their mind as long as they went to the stand and took and oath.

At first everypony just looked around not knowing if they should go up or not. Murmuring and whispers were heard until on pony made her way through the crowd. When Heart saw who it was his gut turned over with guilt.

It was a mare with a eye patch on. She was a pegasus but here wings were stubs on her barrel. She could no longer fly. Her cutie mark burned off. She looked at Heart. He could see the hated in her eye.

She was expecting to see disgust or anger in Heart but she didn't

Heart's eyes held in them nothing but regret and remorse. He did not fear his fate. The only pony he hated was himself.

She took an oath and promised to tell the truth and began to tell her story. She told everypony about how Heart had tortured her. Heart hated hearing his own mistakes. He did not cower away however. He sat and paid attention to every word.

The mare became emotional not too far into her story. Her voice cracked and moisture left her eyes. She had finished tell about how Heart tortured her but what was surprising was that she left out what he did to the others. "Heart's Vision was a terrible leader and deserves what he gave out. He deserves to have his horn broken, cutie mark burned and his eye gouged put just like he did to me. Then he deserves to be locked up so he can never hurt another pony."

The rulers looked to Heart. "What do you have to say in your defense?"

Heart didn't want to defend himself. He did however want to put things right. Heart stood up and made his way towards the scarred mare. He looked her in the eye. "I can't take those things that I did back. I can tell you that I am sorry. If I could go back and change what I did than I would, but again I can't. You know what I will do? I will give you your body back." Heart's horn lit up as he started to perform a spell. It targeted the mare and slowly her wings grew back. Her burns over her cutie mark healed. It was not seen but her damaged eye was repaired. Heart finished and backed off. "I am sorry for the pain I caused." Heart went back to his seat.

The mare took her eye patch off. It was odd to her but after a few blinks she could see again. She looked her body over. She once more had her wings and cutie mark back. She was as good as new. It was like she was never hurt. She was not sure what to do about this. She was glad to have her body back but Heart was responsible and se didn't want to thank him. She walked away and back into the crowd of ponies without saying anything.

Heart didn't need thanks he was happy that he restored what he stole.

The next pony up was a pony that looked familiar to Heart but he couldn't place a name. When she spoke Heart remembered. It was the mother that he had spoke to before he decided to start offering government support for single parents.

"I say that Heart's Vision is a good pony. He may have done some bad things but he did good as well. He made many ponies' lives better. Because of him my daughter and I can live without me working myself to the bone. I can actually be a mother. He has helped many ponies in the same way. Don't do as that other pony suggested. Heart has done a lot of good. Give him a second chance. Every pony deserves a second chance." The mare stepped down.

The day continued with ponies coming up and saying how Hear effected them. Either directly or by his laws or by the Lanterns. Some were positive. The helpful laws that gave more funding to schools and such. There were many ponies who talked about his cruel acts against those who stood against him. The public punishments. The skins put up on display.

It had been hours and every pony was getting restless. It seemed no pony had anything more to say and it was Heart's turn. He stood up and looked at the crowd which had grown since they first began. All of the elements of harmony were now here watching and waiting when an old face stepped forward and took the oath. it was Nick and he looked calm rather then most ponies had that day. "I haven't known Heart long or very well, but what I do know is how he let my friends, family and love live. even in that stupid, as most of you would say, "hostel" take over. he could have killed the rulers to make sure they never bothered him again, but he let them live and even let my friend Chaotic be an adviser. So if you ask me, even under the control of those damn things he was still a better pony than most could see. ya he deserves some punishment for his crimes, but he doesn't deserve death after fighting things that none of us could think about fighting. so please go easy on him. he isn't that bad a guy." then Nick stepped down and joined Twilight who had a look of thanks to her loved one.

Heart enjoyed the kind words. Heart had not spent much time with Nick after his adviser status and after the take over. In the recent months Heart had been busy keeping the peace and Nick just wasn't around. Heart hoped to rekindle his friendship after all of this. For now Heart needed to speak for himself like he was going to before Nick decided to say something.

Heart looked at all the ponies of the crowd. "I am sorry. I can't really say much other than that. All I can do is tell you what I plan on doing. I will accept whatever punishment I am given. Other than that I will do my best to make up for my sins. I think that I will heal ponies. I'm tired of hurting ponies. I just want to make things better. I don't see a better way to do that with outing causing more problems." Heart looked to the rulers. "Whatever you see fit. If you think I need to die than I will accept that. If you think I should be imprisoned than so be it. I am responsible for my actions and I deserve to be punished."

The rulers discussed it quietly so no other pony heard. Heart assumed they came to a decision. They faced Heart and Chaotic spoke for them. "Since we are rulers we could not take the stand, but we will speak our peace before giving punishment. I will start off by saying that yes he let my family live and I am grateful for that kindness that he didn't need to give. I was there behind the scenes when most of you just saw it through the looking glass. so I can tell you that yes he went against what I advised him at times. but it wasn't all his fault. and before you argue let me ask you a few question to see it from his side of the coin."

Chaotic used a spell and showed the illusion of a windigo appear. "You all know the tales behind these beasts, and how just three almost wiped out this kingdom. well now imagine all that evil power stuck inside you since birth. then fighting them without knowing for so long that they are just a part of you. the voices that tell you right and wrong, but only saw that the wrong is right. now add two more of those monsters n top of that. yes Heart had five of these trapped windigos inside him and he fought them off the best he could without knowing they were starting to control him."

Chaotic then made the illusion disappear and another show up. it was the scene of Heart at the castle when he apologized to Chaotic and the others and wanted to give up the throne. "This is the real heart that showed up after he found out about those things being in him. once he knew what those voices were and what they were convincing him to do. he fought, and at great pain to himself. and if you haven't noticed he had started to give us our positions back as well. it was a plan between all of us old rulers and him. that way it would be peaceful and not seen as another take over."

the other rules all nodded and agreed. "why did all of you think that the public punishments stopped? why the skins disappeared? because Heart saw the evil he had done and started to right his wrong on his own. we had little to no control over him starting to fix his mistakes. and that was all while being told to kill and torture by five strong monsters in his head. so you tell me if he is all that bad after fighting all that? yes I will admit as will he, that he made some horrible decisions and should be given punishment for them. but none of us think death is in order."

Chaotic could hear the gasps and mummers but ignored them completely and continued. "so as punishment he will be stuck with a magic limiter and be doing many community serves hours for the rest of his life. these activities will consist of healing those at the hospitals, being an adviser so he can learn proper ways to handle life, and anything else we find that he can do. he will no longer be the sole leader of the Lanterns either. he will be allowed to be a Beacon, along with the other Beacons as of now. but not the sole leader. and yes the Lanterns are staying. they have done much good and I honestly like the idea and what they stand for. so this will be his punishment and if any of you have concerns or complaints then step forth now and speak."

Some ponies rejected this punishment. Saying it was too lenient. Saying Heart deserved worse. None brought a compelling argument and the decision stood. Afterwards Heart met up with the rulers, away from the crowd. "I was expecting far worse punishment than that. I was expecting a death sentence or life in prison. Thank you for being so kind. I may not deserve it now but I will earn it." Heart looked at Nick who was talking to Chaotic before Heart came up. "Thank you as well Nick. Your words were kind. I am sorry that they had to be said at all."

Nick wasn't concerned about being kind. He did it because he thought it was right and Twilight had asked him to. "You messed up Heart. I can't lie about that. That doesn't mean that you don't deserve a second chance. For someone so into giving other people a second chance you sure don't like to give yourself one."

Heart had his reasons. "I looked at it this way. You need to hold yourself to a higher standard than every pony else because no pony else will. I wanted to live without regret. I wanted to be able to say that I always did what was right." Heart sighed. "Now it seems I have more regret than anything else. The windigos may have tempted me into doing wrong but if I was stronger than I could have held them back. It might have been better if I had died when I was young, before I committed all these evil deeds."

Celestia place her hoof on Heart. "If that had happened than do you think that Scootaloo would be as happy as she is now? Do you think that the homeless, the orphans, the lost and forgotten ponies would be where they are? Do you think that these hopeless ponies would be doing the good deeds that they are now? You struck fear into hundreds of ponies. Do you really think that you hurt that many ponies? Most of the ones you hurt were criminals. I'm not saying I condone the action but the ones you hurt, for the most part hurt others. The actual ponies that didn't deserve it at all were few. Think of all the ponies that you helped and saved. The Lanterns will continue to exist for a long time. In that time they will save countless lives. You did well Heart. Your cruelty will be remembered so that this never happens again but so will your kindness." Celestia put her hoof down. "Let's stop talking about such dreary subject. I want to celebrate Heart's new life. His new beginning, free of those who would drag him down. I can't wait to see all the good Heart will do." Everypony agreed but Heart.

Heart was quiet until he was prompted by Discord. Heart put on a fake smile, no pony fell for it. Heart spoke with all the fake cheer he could muster. "Let's go back to the castle and party! I think every pony needs some relief!"

Before Heart took a step he felt a tug on his neck and noticed that the necklaces was gone. it was in Chaotic's magic and he looked at him with a smile. "We are going, but without this. i would destroy it in front of you if it wouldn't release them. but either way I not letting you kill your spirits by keeping this thing with you. you have enough reminders of what you went threw without having this horrid trophy." Chaotic gave him a smirk. "Besides how are you supposed to celebrate a new life when you have this old life thing dragging ya down."

Heart wanted to say something about keeping it but he didn't want to start a fight. He wanted everypony to be happy.

Everypony had fun at the party. It had been going on a while and Heart decided it was the time to talk to Chaotic. He found him and dragged him away so they could have their conversation in private. "Chaotic, I thank you for looking out for me but I want that necklace back."

Chaotic had expected it but didn't really want to. "I will make you a deal. i will give it back to you if you tell me why you want it. if it is a better reason then to torture yourself i will give it to you, if not it goes to the vault to never be seen again. Deal?"

Heart wished had just given it back. "Deal. I have a few reasons. The main one is that I want to make sure I remember that I did those things, BUT that it I also their fault and not mine. With them out of me it is I who make the decisions. It gives me some comfort knowing that they can't hurt me or any pony else. I also want to keep them safe so no pony can free them." Heart lost some of his confidence. "Plus… Scootaloo doesn't know what it is and likes the way it looks."

Chaotic couldn't help but smile at the last reason. "for that last reason alone I will give this back to you. but any of those would work as well. I see this is more a charm of your will power than one of those marks." Chaotic pointed to the murder mark. "so I will give it back without having to worry about it hurting you further. just make sure you take it off from time to time to just be a normal pony without any reminders." With that Chaotic opened his wing and revealed the necklace and gave it over to him. "I figured you would want it back so I kept it close." then Chaotic gave him a smile. "Now i am going to go dance with my wife and daughter, and I suggest you dance with Scootaloo before the night is through."

Heart put a hoof out. "Hold up. I want to talk to you a minute."

Chaotic held off from leaving. "Yes?"

Heart didn't care about what happened but was curious. "You said you would keep the Lanterns around but what about some of my more… fanatical policies, such as the brandings?"

Chaotic had thought about it before and still wasn't fully sure of the answer. "most of it I plan to keep. those without hope of change are dealt with. the brandings are actually a decent idea. harsh yet effective and keeps the crime rates down when mixed with everything else. the public stuff will stay gone for sure. but most things like the prisons being gone and stuff like that will stay. even the death sentence, even if Tia and Luna don't like it much, it will keep everyone safer. so like I said. you did a lot of good and thing that will be kept in place. you taking over just opened the door to a few things that needed to be done. the best of my old world and this one put together to form a safer world for all. oh! speaking of which, I need to have Cebby spread the word that the borders are fully open once again. so get used to seeing dragons and griffins around again. I am sure the kings will like the changes as well, so you might have just opened the door for more then one kingdom to grow."

Heart was glad that everything he did wasn't a failure. "I was expecting everything that I had done to disappear but if you think that is what is best than so be it."

"I do."

"Very well." Heart put the necklace back on. "You know Scoot is right. Thing might have a darker secret but it sure is pretty."

Chaotic gave him a smile and nodded. "she's a mare, means a good taste in jewelry." He gave a laugh then headed back to the party. "See you around Heart."

Heart laughed as well. "Yeah, see you."

After the party started to die down Celestia found Heart on a balcony overlooking the gardens. Heart was never one for drinking but Celestia enjoyed it in moderation. She was a little less formal with Heart do to this. "What are you thinking about?"

Heart had drifted away and didn't notice Celestia come by. "Lots of things to be honest. Mostly on my mistakes. Some of the future." Heart's voice was depressed.

Celestia had seen many things in her lifetime. She had met many ponies and Heart was rare in his own right. "You know you are a rare breed. Many ponies do things and never think about how much they messed up. Most don't think about others, they care about themselves. You have your faults but none that horrible. Given time I think that you could have been an alicorn."

Heart was surprised. "Now I think you give me too much credit."

"No, really. It would have been a while but I could see you getting there. I am not sure you would have accepted but we would have offered."

Heart thought about it. "Yeah, I don't think I could leave Scootaloo behind. She would have to become one as well."

"That is a big problem now isn't? Even we let her be one too than your child would have to become one or you would have to witness him dieing. And if he became one than whoever he loved would not be one. He would more than likely want them changed as well. Then his kids. It's and endless stream. That is one reason why we don't let anypony do it. They have to be willing to leave their loved one behind so that they can do what is needed. Alicorns must be trust worthy. If they aren't than they will abuse the power. I am afraid for Twilight."

Heart couldn't see Twilight doing anything but what is right. "Why? She is a great pony. She would never abuse her power."

Celestia should have made her wording more clear. "I am sorry. I didn't mean that she would abuse her power. I was speaking of her friends. When they die she will be torn apart. I don't think she will do anything too drastic. Nick will keep her safe if she doesn't come to terms with it. I think the hardest thing about being an alicorn is coming to terms with death. I was close to many ponies. Watching the ones you care about die is one of the worst feelings. Knowing that you may never see them again. We had cases where an alicorn went mad after losing the ones they love. Had to take them down. Not a fun experience. That is very rare though."

Heart thought about all she said. "Do you ever think about Illusion? When he finds love and loses do you fear that you may have to do that to him?"

Celestia had indeed thought about it. "I have and don't like the idea but, if I HAD to do it I would. My duty to my subjects comes before my own feelings. Part of the job. Luna was one of those cases. I fortunately was able to imprison her instead of ending her life. The elements of harmony prevented me from that regret." Celestia wanted off the subject. "What do you plan on doing exactly. We did sentence you to community service for the rest of you life so you have to stick around here."

Heart had put that into consideration. "I want to heal ponies. I also could use my magic to enhance ponies' abilities. Once I used my magic on Scoot to help her fly she picked up on doing it by herself quickly. I could use this to help ponies learn to use their magic faster. I am not sure how well that will work out since Chaotic said something about a magic inhibitor"

Celestia thought that one of the others would have explained it to Heart. "It isn't like what most would think. We are designing one just for you. It will let you use magic but you can't absorb other ponies.'. So you can perform any spell you want but you won't be able to steal other's power. I don't believe that you ever will do it again but it is more to keep other ponies happy. Your plan sounds good. You could do that when you are not advising."

Heart wasn't too comfortable with the idea of having any say in the matter. He didn't trust himself. He would go along with it. He was going to trust the rulers.

Discord had been looking for Celestia. He was inside and waving to her to come back. Celestia looked at Heart. "I am missed it seems. Take it easy Heart. Be happy that you get a second chance to be happy."

Heart nodded. "Yeah, yeah. I will, trust me." Celestia left Heart.

Then Heart got another visitor. "Boo."

Heart jumped thinking he was alone. He turned to see that Dominic Brightstone had snuck on him. "Ah shit. You scared me."

Dominic shrugged. "Sorry. I just wanted to check on you. I never got to talk to you about your freedom from the spirits." Dominic placed his claws on the railing and looked at garden.

Heart didn't hold any hard feelings towards Dominic. "I'm fine now that they are gone. My punishment is pretty light and I have good friends nearby. My situation isn't that bad."

"I'm sorry for doing this to you Heart. It is my fault that you experienced so much pain. You are a very good pony."

"Yeah, yeah. Don't worry about it. You made a mistake. If you look at it now it was a good thing. Your country now no longer has the windigos and neither do I. So every pony won."

Dominic looked down at Heart's necklace. The stone containing the windigos. "Why do you wear them? Is it a trophy?"

Heart shook his head. "Not at all. I wear this to remind me what I did. It is fresh now but years from now I might let the memory drift and I don't want that. I need to remember so that I never lose myself. I made the mistake and I get to live with it. I may have fixed it but that doesn't excuse the actions. But from now on I can always look at this and remember. I can then make sure I never make the same mistake."

The slican thought about Heart's words. He regretted what he did to Heart even if it was not intentional. "I should not have been so ignorant. I meddled with things that I knew nothing of to please my leader. I did horrible acts. I showed no mercy, slaughtered innocents. Unlike you I did it without a force compelling me. I was much like your follower Petal. Willing to do anything for my leader. I realize how stupid I was now but it seemed so right back then." The slican sighed. "Well nothing I can do about it now. And Don't be so hard on yourself. Zecora had some interesting theories on why you couldn't control yourself."

"Like what?"

"Well one was that since you were born with them your body actually thought they were part of you. And since they had a conscious and could think and act. Your subconscious was influenced by them. You had absolutely no control over them. It was like they were whispering to your soul. Meaning that they could control how you felt. How you thought. Everything. So the next time you feel like beating yourself up over it, don't. There was absolutely NOTHING you could have done. If you want to blame some one than blame me."

Heart blew it off. "Nah. I will blame them. Did you know that two of the were slicans before becoming windigos?"

"No. In my country we were taught how to kill, nothing else was important. Word to the wise. Don't ever go there. Horrible place. I much prefer it here. I can't walk around the streets but it is just calmer. I also think that I may have made a friend with Zecora. She is very intelligent."

"Good. It is nice to have friends. If you ever need anything I am here for you."

Dominic backed off. "As am I." Dominic left.

Heart went back to trying to think but it was not his luck to have some peace.

Scootaloo sighted her husband. She yelled at him from inside. "Hey Heart! I want to leave, come on."

Heart turned. He mumbled under his breathe. "Oh dear Celestia why did I let her talk me into having a kid?"

Scootaloo surprisingly heard him. "Cause I'm irresistible." Heart looked up to see Scootaloo modeling. Heart sighed. _'I understand doing it at home but why does she do it in public? Every pony is looking at her. I getting her back to the room before she does something worse.'_

It had been nearly two months since Heart had his punishment placed on him. He once a week did mandatory community service which varied but was mostly something mundane. Since he was skilled in magic he ended up doing much more work than others. Everything he did was done so quick that they had to give him a list of things that needed to be done. He could have slacked off and did things at a normal pace but it was punishment and he did everything as efficient as possible. When he wasn't with the rulers advising he was helping little ponies learn how to use their abilities. If he wasn't doing that he went to the hospitals and healed the injured. He couldn't cure diseases but he could heal physical injuries. He could help those that were ill though. He would repair the damage any disease caused, helping them fight it off. Since he had been doing this the death rate went down in the hospitals he visited.

Heart had shown his willingness to change and that he was done with evil. Over time he regained the trust of the average pony. Petal had done similar. She was no longer a Beacon. She was still considered a Lantern but had no power over anything. Chaotic didn't even wanting her being a Lantern but Plecia convinced him to do it because Petal relied on the Lanterns for support as her family. The Lanterns were now a government program and their leaders were the rulers.

The Beacons ran most of business the Lanterns did since the rulers were busy enough as it was. Since Heart was a Beacon he did hold great responsibility within the Lanterns. Heart was not the actual leader but most of the Beacons listened to him. Heart had no plans to take control of the Lanterns and the rulers trusted that he wouldn't The Lanterns stopped hunting and killing criminals on the rulers orders. Heart made doubly sure to enforce this. The old hunters were watched carefully. They remained Lanterns but most joined police forces. They still wanted to hunt criminals but they thought it best to do it legally.

The Defibrillator stuck around and didn't cause trouble. They actually came in handy when there was something that was critical. It was an odd system to use them however. The rulers had to commission Heart to tell them what to do since they would not listen to any pony but Heart. Their trainer had used magic to ensure they only answered to him.

The Defibrillators were used to guard important ponies and objects. The average guard stood no chance against a Defibrillator. Much less a squad. Heart had told the Defibrillators to not kill anypony unless absolutely necessary so they were not as much of a risk. In their spare time they protected Heart. It wasn't an order it was just what they did. If some pony saw Heart than a Defibrillator was watching him near by. Heart forgot they were there most the time unless some pony decided to give him trouble for when he was king.

Heart didn't even realize that they secretly watched him until some pony decided it was a good idea to stab Heart. Heart had not seen it coming and would have been injured if not for Six teleporting in front of the blade and taking it in the chest. Even to Heart it was intimidating because when the blade entered Six he smiled. Shortly after the attacker was sent to the emergency room with a smashed horn and broken leg. The violence of Six was overlooked because it was in defense.

For the most part Heart didn't have trouble. He got to live with Scootaloo and Dismal in the castle. Heart was in his room with Scootaloo. Heart was laying in bed holding Dismal.

Heart had been genuinely happy for a long time now. Scootaloo laid next to Heart looking at her son and husband contently. "I am glad you finally came around to holding him more often."

Heart looked at his son as he responded. "How could I not hold onto my precious boy? He is so cute." Heart rubbed his nose on his son's. Dismal smiled and giggled

Scootaloo laughed at her husband being so affectionate. "Well I glad you adore your son so much. I just I hope you like the next one as much."

Heart slowly turned to Scootaloo. "What do you mean?"

Scootaloo smiled oddly knowing Heart wasn't going to be happy. "Well… I am pregnant again. Surprise!"

Heart let out a deep sigh. He looked at his son once more. He spoke in a cheery tone. "You know what daddies going to do? Do you? I am going to go curse out Chaotic. Yes I am. Because it seems that even if mommy and I take just a few nights to ourselves you get a sibling. So daddy is now going to have to sit in a hospital room while mommy screams again."

Scootaloo scoffed. "it wasn't that bad. You over exaggerate it so much."

Heart squinted his eyes at Scootaloo. "The yelling wasn't that bad. I could stand the yelling but you didn't just yell at me and the doctors. You punched me in the face!"

"I don't hit that hard!"

"You did it multiple times!"

"I'm sorry that I am too intense for you."

"I am not going to win this so next time I am just going to buy padding." Scootaloo laughed at the thought.

**A/N: We are here! the ending of a great story that was alot of fun to write! took a few turns that Sci-fi and i didn't see coming and it was fun! hard at times but it worked out great if you asked me. so here we are and we would like to know what you all think about it, so review please! what ya thought of our joint project. till next time see ya all later! ~ DLB**

**A/N: yep, that's it. I hope you enjoyed it. A happy ending for Heart. He had some trials but he came out on top. He can now live the life that he deserved. Everyone has choices to make. You can live for yourself or you can live for others. You get to decide who you want to be. No one controls you. Yes you can get put in a bad place from things you can't control but it is your decision to let that effect you or not. Heart let the demons of his life control him but in the end he pushed them away. He said no to the circumstances, and you can too. On a different note, I am thinking of making a sequel to this. It will be about Heart's kids. Not exactly sure to what extent though. Maybe show them growing up. Maybe show them all grown up. IDK. I would love to here your opinions. Message me or leave a review saying what you would like to see. Until next time, have a glorious day/night.~ sci-fi**

**By the way I am working on a sequel to this. if you want to know more or want a message sent to you when i start posting for it so you don't miss it than PM me. ~sci-fi**


End file.
